Kung Fu Monks Prepare an IPO

The 1,500-year-old Shaolin Temple, long believed to be one of the birth places of kung fu, recently announced that it will be round-housing into the modern market with a public stock offering. No underwriters were threatened in the making of this IPO.

The fighting monks will pair with the China Travel Service in a venture that plans to raise up to 1 billion yuan with potential listing in Hong Kong or another yet unnamed mainland market, reports said.

The China Travel Service, a Hong Kong traded company, will invest 100 million yuan to help create the Shaolin Culture and Tourism Co LTD holding company.

The monastery is run by abbott Shi Yongxin, who has earned the nickname “CEO monk” because of his MBA and his apparently aggressive attempts to promote and maintain the Shaolin brand. He was loudly criticized when he installed lavish visitor restrooms equipped with uniformed cleaners that reputedly cost a pretty penny. However, the abbott told a Hong Kong newspaper last year that he would be against an IPO as it would be against the spirit of the Buddha.

The Chinese government has denied that it is pushing the Shaolin monks into this deal, which begs the question, is this a great example of the positive intersection of ancient culture and modern business or just another sad case of exploitation by a certain government?

How will Wall Street react?