Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. is said to have postponed its IPO plans for New Zealand asset finance unit UDC Finance Ltd. to 2019, The Australian reported, citing unidentified sources.
The suspension was due to complications surrounding the planned listing, the sources said.
ANZ first flagged its listing plans for UDC Finance in March after an attempted A$600 million sale of the unit to Chinese conglomerate HNA Group Co. Ltd. was rejected by New Zealand's Overseas Investment Office due to uncertainty over the conglomerate's ownership structure.
David Hisco, CEO of ANZ Bank New Zealand Ltd., had said the lender was looking at whether an IPO would be of interest to UDC Finance's staff and customers and ANZ shareholders, but said there was no immediate requirement to make decisions.
UDC Finance has drawn interest from several companies, including New Zealand's Heartland Bank Ltd., U.S.-based Blackstone Group LP, Australia's Macquarie Group Ltd. and Latitude Financial Services Ltd.
Deutsche Bank was appointed to manage the planned IPO, according to the publication.
