New Delhi, Sept. 6: Indian hospital operator Fortis Healthcare is looking to list a real estate investment trust in Singapore in the next six months to house its property assets and is looking at a valuation of $600-700 million, a senior company executive said.
Fortis, which in July missed out on a bid for control of Singapore-based hospital operator Parkway Holdings, has been working on a possible REIT listing for a year, the executive said, adding that regulatory challenges remain.
“Now we are quite close. A listing will still take five to six months,” said the executive, who asked not be named.
The executive said a listing of all of the firm’s property assets would depend on market conditions in Singapore and the valuation may go up if property prices surged in India.
Religare is the lead adviser on the proposed REIT listing and Fortis is expected to finalise the underwriters in two to three months, said another source with the knowledge of the deal, adding that the Singapore-listed firm would be used as the firm’s vehicle for acquisitions.
Putting its property assets into the REIT would free up capital to focus on its core business, the executive said.
On Wednesday, IFR Asia reported that Fortis Healthcare was seeking a $1 billion Singapore listing within the next six months for its hospital assets and new acquisitions.