Kanzhun founder raises $110 million in share sale, reportedly to pay new offshore tax bill

Kanzhun Ltd. (BZ.US; 2076.HK), operator of China’s leading online recruitment platform Boss Zhipin, disclosed that its founder and Chairman Zhao Peng sold down some of his company shares on Monday for about HK$863 million ($110 million).

According to a filing submitted to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Zhao-controlled Techwolf Ltd. sold 15.17 million Class A ordinary shares in a block trade on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for HK$56.90 per share, representing a discount of about 2.7% to that day’s closing price.

The transaction included 4.46 million existing Class A shares and 10.7 million Class B shares that were converted into Class A shares on a one-for-one basis at the time of the sale. Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that Zhao sold the shares to pay a new Chinese tax on offshore income, although the company has not publicly disclosed the reason for the sale.

Separately, the company announced on Tuesday that it would pay an annual cash dividend of $0.255 per ordinary share, or $0.51 per American depositary share (ADS), for a total payout of approximately $230 million. Starting in 2026, the company said it also plans to allocate at least 50% of its adjusted net income from the preceding year to dividends and share repurchases for three consecutive years.

Kanzhun’s Hong Kong-listed shares closed down 3.59% at HK$56.35 on Tuesday. The stock is down about 28% this year.

By Lee Shih Ta

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