Job search group SEEK has finalised moves to privatise its successful Chinese jobs portal Zhaopin and delist it from the New York Stock Exchange.
SEEK will partner with two China-focused private equity firms Hillhouse Capital Management and FountainVest Partners to acquire all outstanding shares of Zhaopin, which was floated on the NYSE in mid-2014.
The website is the largest and most popular Chinese jobs portal, with about 36.9 million job postings in the year to June, 2016.
Under the delisting, Seek and its private equity partners will by the outstanding Zhaophin shares for $US18.20 ($A24.14) in cash per American depositary share, or $US9.10 ($A12.07) per ordinary share.
The deal values Zhaopin at $US1.01 billion ($A1.34 billion).
SEEK, which currently owns 61.2 per cent of shares in Zhaopin, and 74.5 per cent of voting power, will retain its stake in the privatised business.
The offer price represents a 14.2 per cent premium to the closing price of the Zhaopin American Depositary Share on February 16, when the group first announced discussions around the potential deal.
The ADS last traded at $US17.74 on the NYSE on Thursday.
The agreement comes about 15 months after Zhaopin first received a proposal from a buyer group comprising of CDH V Management Company and Shanghai Goliath Investment Management.
A second proposal was received in May 2016 from a consortium comprising executives from Zhaopin and Sequoia China Investment Management.
The transaction is expected to be completed in the second half of 2017, SEEK said in a statement to the ASX on Friday.
At 1035 AEST, SEEK shares were up 1.2 per cent at $16.13 each.
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