Is Berjaya billionaire chief Vincent Tan set on cashing out on his assets?
January 22, 2014 Leave a comment
Is Berjaya chief Vincent Tan set on cashing out on his assets?
Tuesday, January 21, 2014 – 09:57
Wong Wei-Shen
The Star/Asia News Network
PETALING JAYA – Berjaya group founder and billionaire Tan Sri Vincent Tan has been on a listing spree of late, begging the question if he is set on cashing out on several of his assets.There are mixed views on this, as some say the listing exercises are merely to enhance the value of his assets, while there are yet others who are more sceptical about the monetisation of his assets.
“If the rationale is to feed expansion plans, then the listing is justified. But if it is merely to pare down the group’s debts, then investors would have to dig deeper before investing in the stock,” said an analyst.
Last year, the group saw two successful listings – Caring Pharmacy Group Bhd and its Mazda dealership Berjaya Auto Bhd.
Meanwhile, plans to list Berjaya Sports Toto Bhd as a business trust in Singapore was pulled back due to unfavourable market conditions. However, plans to list the 7-Eleven franchise are back on track again, after having fallen through twice.
Reports have also indicated that Tan is toying with the idea of floating football team Cardiff City on Singapore’s small-cap Catalist exchange.
In the same vein, news broke over the weekend that Tan’s online payment company MOL Global Pte had already identified investment banks Deutsche Bank AG and Credit Suisse AG to work on a US$300 million (S$383 million) initial public offering exercise in the United States.
On this, another analyst opined that listing a company was always a good thing to enhance franchise value. “There are still growth opportunities in MOL Global, so logically, I wouldn’t cash out,” he said.
The company had previously planned to list in Kuala Lumpur, or carry on with a dual-listing in either Singapore or Hong Kong. Now, however, it plans to be listed on the tech-heavy Nasdaq by the first half of the year.
Some analysts are surprised that it has chosen the US market to list in, as MOL Global could get lost in the huge sea of almost 2,500 stocks listed on Nasdaq.
“If it lists here, MOL Global could get more attention because our market is a lot smaller. Also, Tan is more well-known here,” said an analyst.
However, another analyst said it made perfect sense for MOL Global to be listed in the United States, as “Internet traders are savvier” there. “There are no boundaries for Internet or online payment companies in the US,” he pointed out.
In 2009, MOL Global bought social networking site Friendster Inc to boost its online reach, which has now been turned primarily into an Internet gaming network.
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