The Formula One Group?s plans for a $3 billion Singapore listing may be delayed, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said on Friday, after three other initial public offerings in Asia were pulled this week.
Formula One, the London-based racing group headed by the 81-year-old billionaire Bernie Ecclestone, looks to have become the latest victim of an increasingly hostile turn in the global market for IPO?s.
Formula One started preliminary marketing of the deal to institutional investors two weeks ago, with the goal of listing on the Singapore stock market by the end of this month, another person with knowledge of the plans had previously said.
??The company is continuing to talk to investors,?? the first person said Friday, speaking on condition of anonymity. ??In the last few days, the market has obviously been pretty bad.?? Formula One had not formally kicked off its listing by taking share orders, and based on comments made Thursday by Mr. Ecclestone, it appeared unlikely that it would do so any time in the immediate future. ??My feeling is it?s probably a better idea to get everything ready and then go ahead at two months? notice when the markets have settled down,?? Ecclestone said, according to Bloomberg News.
??There?s no rush, the markets aren?t good at the moment, it doesn?t inspire people,?? he told the news agency on Thursday. ??We don?t have to do it now.?? On Thursday, Graff Diamonds pulled an IPO in Hong Kong that had been planned to raise $1 billion, citing slumping markets that were a ??significant barrier?? to getting the deal done. Graff, a top-end gemstone retailer, had planned to price its offering on Friday and begin trading next week.
Earlier this week, two other Chinese companies withdrew plans for share offerings in Hong Kong that would have raised up to $750 million between them. China Nonferrous Mining, which has copper mines in Zambia, canceled plans for a listing on Wednesday, while the luxury car dealer China Yongda Automobile Services said Monday that it was pulling its $432 million IPO because of ??the recent deterioration of the equity market.??