Tong Ren Tang unit pulls Hong Kong IPO in first postponement amid listing boom this year
Hospital-network operator delays plan to raise up to US$115 million amid tepid demand
Beijing Tong Ren Tang Healthcare Investment, a provider of healthcare services based on traditional Chinese medicine, postponed its Hong Kong initial public offering (IPO) on Friday amid tepid investor demand for its shares.
The delay is the first of its kind during the current IPO boom. New share offerings in the city raised about US$11.64 billion as of March 18 this year, up 385 per cent from about US$2.4 billion a year earlier, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
Tong Ren Tang was one of six trading debuts slated for Monday, including an exchange-traded fund (ETF) and firms involved in AI and robotics. The firm had aimed to raise up to HK$897.7 million (US$115 million) by offering 108.15 million shares at between HK$7.30 and HK$8.30 each.
Tong Ren Tang Healthcare Investment, which had already launched its public offer and collected subscription monies from retail and institutional investors, said it would refund all application funds in full by Monday, according to a filing with the Hong Kong stock exchange.
It cited “prevailing market conditions” and other factors.