Ecclestone to delay F1 IPO

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone has confirmed that the sport is now unlikely to be floated on the Singapore stock market until the end of the year. It had been reported that the much-hyped $10 billion initial public offering (IPO) would take place this month, but given the on-going crisis in the euro zone and following news that luxury jeweller Graff Diamonds has became the fourth company to abandon an IPO in Hong Kong, there has been a re-think. “We haven't got a date set yet, but with all the problems in the eurozone and the markets, we will be waiting until things have settled a little,” Ecclestone told British newspaper, The Guardian. “Who would want to try and list now? I did see what Graff did, and it shows now isn't the right time.” Despite the delay however, Ecclestone is determined the float will go ahead, probably in the final quarter of 2012. “This year, for sure, we are going to go through to market. I don't think there's a big rush, but we plan to get it done by the end of the year,” he added. “With the way things are at the moment, people are reluctant to invest. Look at the markets. If people aren't buying stock on companies that have been on the markets for 20 years, why will they come and invest in a new one now? "We'll wait until October or November when the F1 season is over, because at the moment we just don't have time to do an investor roadshow,” he concluded.