Alibaba-backed LinkDoc mulls private $200m fundraiser after frozen US IPO
Chinese medical data firm LinkDoc Technology is reportedly looking to raise between $200m and $300m from a private fundraiser, weeks after it froze plans for a US float.
LinkDoc, which is backed by Alibaba Health Information Technology, is also mulling a fresh initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong instead of across the pond, Bloomberg first reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
No decision has yet been made, sources claimed, meaning plans for a Hong Kong IPO could still change.
The firm, which has the largest dataset of China’s oncology cohorts according to research from Frost & Sullivan, froze its plans for its IPO in July.
The float, destined for the US’ Nasdaq Index, was forecast to raise as much as $211m – which would have pushed a valuation of some $15bn, according to Nasdaq.
The Nasdaq said at the time that, while LinkDoc suspended the IPO, “this was not necessarily about the company. The fact is that there are major regulatory shifts in China.”
Within a wider technology sector crackdown, Beijing has become particularly hawkish surrounding firm’s which hold what they consider to be sensitive data and the US stock market.
In late August, Beijing reportedly proposed new rules which would ban local sensitive data firm from US IPOs.
However, the China Securities Regulatory Commission – its local market watchdog – said that those in the pharmaceutical industry, are still likely to receive regulatory approval for foreign listings, according to the Wall Street Journal.
City PM has contacted LinkDoc for comment.