GDS explores Singapore listing after Hong Kong, US: sources

Data centre operator GDS Holding is weighing a secondary listing in Singapore in addition to US and Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Shanghai-based firm has held initial talks with potential advisers on a plan to list its shares on the Singapore exchange, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. It hasn’t decided whether it will raise any capital through the listing, the people said.

Considerations are at an early stage and GDS could decide not to proceed with a listing in the South-east Asian country, the people said. A representative for GDS didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

GDS has been trading in New York since 2016 when it raised about US$200 million in an initial public offering. The company later joined a slew of US-listed Chinese firms in seeking homecoming listings in Hong Kong as escalating Sino-US tensions added to delisting risks. In 2020, GDS raised about US$1.9 billion in Hong Kong’s sixth-largest first-time share sale that year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

A Singapore listing by GDS could follow Chinese electric vehicle maker Nio’s second listing in the city-state in May. Nio didn’t sell new shares or raise money as it went public in Singapore by way of introduction.

Founded in 2001, GDS develops and operates data centres in China including in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Chengdu, according to its website. The company started its overseas expansion plan last year with plans for facilities in South-east Asia.

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GDS’s American depositary receipts have slumped more than 51 per cent in the year to date, valuing it at about US$4.4 billion. It cut the upper end of its full-year revenue estimate by around 3 per cent in an earnings report last month, citing factors including the impact of China’s Covid-19 lockdowns. BLOOMBERG