Iskandar Waterfront City, Ekovest suspended on merger deal announcement

PETALING JAYA: Trading in Iskandar Waterfront City Bhd (IWC) and Ekovest Bhd, which are controlled by tycoon Tan Sri Lim Kang Hoo, has been suspended from 9am to 5pm today pending material announcement.
Last July, IWC agreed to give its holding company Iskandar Waterfront Holdings (IWH) a second extension until tomorrow (October 31) to execute definitive sale and purchase agreements under a proposed restructuring exercise.
The restructuring exercise forms part of a proposed merger undertaken by IWH to consolidate the land bank of IWH Group and transfer listing of IWC to IWH.
The proposed one-for-one merger will see IWH taking up the remaining 61.7% equity in IWC for RM1.50 per share, to be satisfied via issuance of IWH shares on the basis of one new IWH share for one existing IWC share, to create a master property developer with over RM30 billion worth of land.
About 3,593 acres of land with an open market value of RM4.1 billion will be injected into IWH, bringing the total landbank to 7,400 acres in Kuala Lumpur and Johor for the merged entity.
The proposed merger was expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2018.
IWC and Ekovest shares closed at RM1.40 and RM1.16 last Friday respectively.