Germany’s Brainlab puts IPO on hold

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BERLIN (Reuters) -German medical technology company Brainlab on Tuesday became the latest IPO candidate in the region to put listing plans on hold amid volatile stock markets over recent months. 

Brainlab, a Munich-based maker of imaging and guidance software for surgeons, said in a brief statement that it and the selling shareholders decided to postpone the planned IPO and to keep it under consideration for a later time.

While the statement did not cite a reason, CEO Rainer Birkenbach said in a staff memo seen by Reuters that “geopolitical uncertainties continue to have a significant impact on the international capital markets”.

“At this point in time, an IPO does not offer the optimal conditions for our company,” though initial first-quarter business results looked positive, he added.

It had previously eyed a price of 80 euros ($94) per share, the lower end of a previous offer range, for its planned initial public offering with the first day of trading scheduled for Thursday.

The listing on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange would have been the first major IPO this year for Germany.

Several European companies have pulled listing plans so far this year amid growing investor uncertainty from global trade wars and military conflicts. German car parts seller Autodoc put IPO plans on hold last month.

The planned sale of Brainlab shares worth 416 million euros, both existing and new ones, would have valued all of its equity capital at close to 1.7 billion euros.

($1 = 0.8523 euros)

(Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Emma-Victoria Farr in Frankfurt, Alexander Huebner in Munich; editing by Matthias Williams and Miranda Murray)