Arabian Centres IPO said to be delayed as Alhokair detained

Plans to revive the initial public offering (IPO) of Arabian Centres, Fawaz Alhokair Group’s mall unit, have been suspended after the accounts of its co-founder were frozen in Saudi Arabia’s recent crackdown against corruption, Bloomberg reported on Sunday, citing sources with knowledge of the matter.

Fawaz Alhokair, who is a major shareholder in the group, is among several top businessmen, princes, and government officials arrested in the corruption probe earlier this month led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the sources said.

Before the purge, the group had planned to restart work on the listing of Arabian Centres, they added.

When contacted about the arrest and IPO, Fawaz Alhokair’s personal assistant told the agency that there are “many rumors” in the market, but  it is “business as usual” at the group.

In February 2015, the Fawaz Alhokair Group was close to hiring banks including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America to manage the listing of a 30 percent stake in its subsidiary Arabian Centres, which owns 19 shopping centers in the Kingdom.

The sale could have raised about $2 billion and was due to take place in H2 2016, Muhanad Awad, CEO of FAS Capital, the investment arm of Alhokair, said at the time.