Parkson said planning IPO of retail ops

Parkson Holdings Bhd is planning an initial public offering of its retail operations in Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam, said a person with knowledge of the matter.

The sale of the business, called Parkson Retail Asia Pte Ltd, may raise S$300 million (US$250 million) to S$500 million in Singapore, said the person, who declined to be identified because the deal hasn’t been made public. Parkson Holdings picked HSBC Holdings Plc to manage the IPO, the person said.

Kuala Lumpur-based Parkson Holdings operates 36 department stores in Malaysia and seven in Vietnam, according to its website. The company incorporated Parkson Retail Asia in Singapore in March. In June, it completed the purchase of Indonesia’s PT Tozy Sentosa, which owns the country’s Centro department stores, for US$12.8 million.

Alfred Cheng, Parkson Retail Group’s managing director, didn’t immediately return a phone call and an e-mail seeking comment on the IPO. Malaysian newspaper the Sun Daily reported on the Parkson Retail Asia listing earlier today.

Parkson Holdings shares rose 2 per cent to RM5.56 at 10:30 a.m. local time, outperforming 0.6 per cent gain in benchmark FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI Index. -- Bloomberg

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