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China's New Century withdrew S'pore IPO after complaint-sources
Wed May 5, 2010 5:12am EDT
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SINGAPORE, May 5 (Reuters) - China's New Century Shipbuilding withdrew its $560 million Singapore IPO after a complaint the firm left out critical information in its prospectus, sources said on Wednesday, the latest controversy over a Chinese firm listing in the city-state.
The pullout of an IPO that would have been Singapore's biggest so far this year is a setback to bourse operator Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI), which has lagged Hong Kong in attracting large IPOs from China.[ID:nSGE64401X]
Two sources familiar with the deal confirmed a report in the Singapore Business Times on Wednesday that said the Chinese shipbuilder failed to disclose an ongoing legal dispute with a customer that had cancelled an order for two bulk carriers.
The sources declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.
The two vessels remain on the firm's order books in its initial public offering prospectus, which also said New Century was not involved in any legal proceedings, the paper said, adding a complaint had been made to the Singapore Exchange.
New Century did not respond to the report or to Reuters queries. It said overnight that it was withdrawing its IPO and may list on a future date. [ID:nSGE640001].
Both Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and UBS (UBSN.VX), which handled the IPO, declined comment.
SGX "does not publicly discuss its dealings with individual companies," a spokeswoman said in response to queries.
Investors had been put off by a number of corporate scandals in Singapore involving Chinese companies in recent years, but Chinese shares, known as S-shares, have since recovered.
"For this case, it's probably unfair to say that all S-chips are once again unreliable. I guess this one is more company specific," Terence Wong, co-head of research at DMG & Partners Securities, told Reuters.
"There are obviously transparency and governance issues, but it is not to say it will be like what we saw in end-2008 and beginning 2009 where there were CEOs running away and problems with the books," he added.
Wed May 5, 2010 5:12am EDT
Related News
SINGAPORE, May 5 (Reuters) - China's New Century Shipbuilding withdrew its $560 million Singapore IPO after a complaint the firm left out critical information in its prospectus, sources said on Wednesday, the latest controversy over a Chinese firm listing in the city-state.
The pullout of an IPO that would have been Singapore's biggest so far this year is a setback to bourse operator Singapore Exchange (SGXL.SI), which has lagged Hong Kong in attracting large IPOs from China.[ID:nSGE64401X]
Two sources familiar with the deal confirmed a report in the Singapore Business Times on Wednesday that said the Chinese shipbuilder failed to disclose an ongoing legal dispute with a customer that had cancelled an order for two bulk carriers.
The sources declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.
The two vessels remain on the firm's order books in its initial public offering prospectus, which also said New Century was not involved in any legal proceedings, the paper said, adding a complaint had been made to the Singapore Exchange.
New Century did not respond to the report or to Reuters queries. It said overnight that it was withdrawing its IPO and may list on a future date. [ID:nSGE640001].
Both Morgan Stanley (MS.N) and UBS (UBSN.VX), which handled the IPO, declined comment.
SGX "does not publicly discuss its dealings with individual companies," a spokeswoman said in response to queries.
Investors had been put off by a number of corporate scandals in Singapore involving Chinese companies in recent years, but Chinese shares, known as S-shares, have since recovered.
"For this case, it's probably unfair to say that all S-chips are once again unreliable. I guess this one is more company specific," Terence Wong, co-head of research at DMG & Partners Securities, told Reuters.
"There are obviously transparency and governance issues, but it is not to say it will be like what we saw in end-2008 and beginning 2009 where there were CEOs running away and problems with the books," he added.