Singapore a REIT listing magnet for India firms

The success of Singapore's first real estate trust offering this month has prompted talk that other similar, previously shelved, offerings are now being dusted off. India's top real estate firms, DLF Ltd and Unitech Ltd may revive their Singapore IPO plans, banking sources said, while the Embassy Group is actively looking into raising funds in the city state. Cache Logistics Trust raised $300 million after its IPO was priced at the high-end of an indicative range at a time when Asia's IPO markets have seen mixed success since last year's bull run. The stock rose 13 percent on its debut on Monday. "Cache's success could point to a REITs proliferation in Singapore," one of the sources said. "Some of the Indian companies have been approaching bankers for the process," said the source, who asked not to be identified due to the sensitivity of the issue. DLF had planned a $1.5 billion IPO, while Unitech had sought to raise about $500 million for its IPO, but these were put on hold in 2008 due to the global financial crisis. DLF and Unitech are India's two largest listed developers. "The (REIT) plan is still there," said a source at DLF, who declined to be identified as he was not authorised to speak to