Malaysia's Iskandar Waterfront $300 mln IPO to list in June-sources

KUALA LUMPUR Jan 22 (Reuters) - Iskandar Waterfront Holdings Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian master property developer, is expected to list on the local bourse in June in a deal set to raise more than $300 million, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

The initial public offering (IPO) will see the Johor-based company joining a handful of listed master developers in Asia, such as the Philippines' Ayala Corp and Japan's Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd. Those companies typically develop a region and have a number of property companies in their stable.

" They are targeting a market capitalisation of some 9 billion ringgit ($3 billion)," one of the sources said, declining to be named as the matter was private. The targeted market value will put Iskandar Waterfront nearly on par with Malaysia's largest property developer UEM Land Holdings Bhd .

The company, whose units include locally listed developer Tebrau Teguh Bhd, has hired CIMB Investment Bank, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan and RHB Investment Bank for the IPO, according to the sources.

CIMB and Deutsche Bank declined to comment. The other banks could not be immediately reached for comment. Officials at Iskandar Waterfront were not immediately available to comment.

Iskandar Waterfront, which counts managing director Lim Kang Hoo and the Johor state government among its shareholders, is the master developer of 1,620 hectares of waterfront land in Iskandar, in the southern Malaysian state of Johor near Singapore.

The development of the Iskandar region, which is being spearheaded by Malaysia's state investment arm Khazanah Nasional Bhd, has attracted other developers such as China's Country Garden Holdings Co Ltd, which has bought 11 hectares of waterfront land.

Iskandar Waterfront's listing is likely to be one of the first after a general election that Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak must call by the end of April.

Malaysia was the top IPO market Asia ex-Japan in 2012, boosted by government privatisations and a strong economy, but analysts and investment bankers say the IPO pipeline has slowed ahead of the polls because of concerns over market volatility.

Malaysian stocks suffered their biggest drop in 16 months on Monday as investors worried about the risks of what is expected to be the Southeast Asian country's closest national election. ($1 = 3.0130 Malaysian ringgit) (Reporting By Yantoultra Ngui Editing by Richard Pullin)