Malaysian hotel operator plans to issue IPO

IHH Healthcare Bhd., Asia’s biggest hospital operator, plans to raise as much as 6.4 billion ringgit (Dh7.35 billion) in its initial public offering in Malaysia and Singapore, two people familiar with the matter said. The Kuala Lumpur-based company, which has signed up 22 so-called cornerstone investors including Blackrock Inc., set an indicative price range of 2.67 ringgit to 2.85 ringgit per share for institutions, the people, who declined to be named as the information is private, said. Malaysia has withstood a global IPO slump, with Felda Global Ventures Holdings Bhd. raising $3.3 billion (Dh12.12 billion) last month in the world’s largest first-time sale since Facebook Inc. Oil palm plantations group Felda jumped 16 per cent on its Kuala Lumpur debut last week after institutional demand for shares exceeded supply by more than 40 times in the offering. The benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index touched an intraday record last month. Globally, IPOs fell 34 per cent to $41.3 billion last quarter as Facebook’s disappointing debut and worsening economic conditions rattled investors, causing companies, including Graff Diamonds Corp., to halt or delay offerings elsewhere. Ahmad Shahizam Mohd Shariff, IHH’s head of business development, declined to comment on the price range, according to a spokeswoman for the company. Malaysian Prime Minister Najeeb Razzaq will formally release the prospectus in Kuala Lumpur tomorrow, according to a media invitation. The group plans to sell as many as 2.23 billion shares, the document shows. Expansion IHH Healthcare, controlled by Malaysia’s state investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd., has more than 4,900 beds in 30 hospitals under brands including Gleneagles and Parkway, according to the prospectus. Its operations and investments span much of Asia from Malaysia, Singapore to China, India and Hong Kong, with more scheduled for Turkey. It plans 3,300 new beds through new hospital developments and expansion of existing facilities over the next five years, according to the document. IHH Healthcare has reserved 62 per cent of its IPO for cornerstones who must hold the shares for a minimum 180 days, according to the sales document. This includes the Government of Singapore Investment Corp., Temasek Holdings Pte’s Fullerton Fund Management Co., and Malaysian billionaire T. Ananda Krishnan’s Usaha Tegas Sdn., it said.