(Reuters) - Super Hi International ( SPHIF ), which operates Chinese hotpot restaurant chain Haidilao in the overseas market, on Thursday priced its initial public offering in the United States at $19.56 per share.

The Chinese restaurant brand raised $52.7 million by selling nearly 2.7 American Depositary Shares (ADS).

The IPO price is at a discount of 9.9% from the as-converted last close of Super Hi's Hong Kong-listed shares, and gives the Singapore-based company a valuation of $1.26 billion.

Haidilao, which started in a small town in Sichuan in 1994, has become one of the most popular Chinese cuisine brands in the world.

Super Hi, which operates mainly in Southeast Asia and North America, plans to primarily use the proceeds from the offering to expand its restaurant network globally.

Super Hi, which commenced its operations outside Greater China in 2012 through its then-parent company Haidilao International, was spun-off and listed as a public company at the end of 2022.

The company operates 119 self-operated restaurants in 13 countries across four countries as of March end. It had opened its first restaurant in Singapore in 2012.

Super Hi's ADS will start trading on the Nasdaq on Friday under the ticker symbol "HDL".

Morgan Stanley and Huatai Securities are the underwriters for the offering.