Canada's Manulife to delay Singapore REIT listing due to market conditions

SINGAPORE - Canada's Manulife Financial Corp said on Monday it was delaying a plan to raise US$421 million (S$569 million) through a Singapore listing of a real estate investment trust (REIT), citing unfavourable market conditions. "In light of increased volatility in the equity capital market, the IPO of Manulife US Real Estate Investment Trust (Manulife US REIT) has been delayed," Manulife said in a statement. "Depending on market conditions, the IPO is expected to proceed at a later date," it added.

The statement follows a Thomson Reuters IFR report that said demand for the IPO did not materialise amid the debt crisis in Greece.

Manulife was looking to sell 694.4 million units, including cornerstone units, at S$0.82 each, which would have made the initial public offering Singapore's biggest in a year.