KUALA LUMPUR: Eco-Shop Marketing Bhd is expecting to raise RM419.87mil from the public issue of 347 million new shares, en route to its listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia.
The dollar store retailer, in conjunction with the launch of its initial public offering (IPO) prospectus, unveiled plans to allocate RM56.27mil (13.4%) of the IPO proceeds to the expansion of its retail footprint nationwide, and another RM200mil (47.6%) to expand its distribution centres.
Another RM10.9mil will be invested in information technology hardware and software.
Of the remainder, RM100mil (23.8%) will be used to repay bank borrowings and RM52.7mil (12.6%) for working capital purposes and to defray the cost of the IPO and listing.
Eco-Shop CEO and executive director Jessica Ng said the company is well-positioned to grow in scale and relevence in the value retail space, which she projects to have immense growth potential.
"This mission is not just business; it is about making a meaningful impact in the lives our customers and the communities we serve," she said at the prospectus launch ceremony.
Eco-Shop's IPO is the largest to be launched in Malaysia over the past eight months.
It comprises a total offering of 862.15 million shares. Of these, 675.37 million will be offered to institutional and selected investors, including Bumiputera investors approved by the Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry (Miti), at an institutional price to be determined by way of bookbuilding.
A further 186.78 million shares will be made available to retail investors at a retail price of RM1.21 per share.
Eco-Shop’s market capitalisation upon listing is expected to be about RM7bil.
According to the company, the joint bookrunners have secured 10 cornerstone investors who collectively subscribed for 90.81 milion shares or 90.31% of the institutional offering (excluding the Bumiputera portion under Miti).
The cornerstone investors are AHAM Asset Management Bhd, Albizia Capital Pte Ltd, Areca Capital Sdn Bhd, Eastspring Investments Berhad, Kairous Equity Sdn Bhd, Kenanga Investors Bhd, Kenanga Islamic Investors Bhd, Lion Global Investors Ltd, RHB Asset Management Sdn Bhd and RHB Islamic International Asset Management Bhd.
Maybank Investment Bank Bhd is the principal adviser, joint global coordinator, joint bookrunner, and sole underwriter for the IPO.
UBS Securities Malaysia Sdn Bhd and UBS AG, Singapore Branch serve as joint global coordinator and joint bookrunner, while RHB Investment Bank Bhd also acts as a joint bookrunner.
