By Echo Wang
March 2 (Reuters) – SoftBank’s PayPay has delayed its highly anticipated IPO roadshow that was scheduled to launch Monday as markets were rattled by this weekend’s attack on Iran, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The postponement, which has not been previously reported, comes after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and sent shockwaves through global financial markets.
The Japanese payments app company was set to file an updated prospectus outlining the price range for its planned Nasdaq listing before markets opened on Monday, kicking off meetings with large institutional investors, one of the people said. But PayPay executives decided to put the roadshow on hold following a call with advisors as they assess the fallout from the conflict, the people said, asking not to be named because the information is private.
Fund managers are often reluctant to commit fresh capital to new stock listings during political unrest, particularly for growth-oriented companies that can be sensitive to shifts in sentiment. Energy prices jumped and major equity indexes slid Monday as investors shifted to safe-haven assets following the attacks. Wall Street’s so-called fear gauge, the VIX, reached a three-month high.
PayPay and SoftBank did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Reuters reported last week that Qatar Investment Authority, Visa and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority were set to anchor the offering with combined commitments of more than $200 million. Two of those investors — Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority — are based in countries recently affected by Iranian missile strikes.
The delay marks another setback for PayPay’s listing ambitions. The company postponed its IPO last year during the U.S. government shutdown, which disrupted regulatory processes and delayed filings at the SEC.
The people cautioned that the launch of the roadshow is subject to market conditions and could change.
(Reporting by Echo Wang in New York. Editing by Dawn Kopecki)
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