Russia-focused gold miner Nordgold postpones London IPO By Reuters

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia-focused gold producer Nordgold said on Tuesday it had decided to postpone the initial public offering (IPO) of its shares on the London Stock Exchange.

Nordgold, majority owned by Russian billionaire Alexei Mordashov and his two sons, was expected to offer at least 25% of its existing shares in London and Moscow, targeting a valuation of up to $5 billion.

“Recent central bank comments indicating an acceleration in expected interest rate rises have created significant uncertainty and volatility in the resources sector, in particular impacting gold and gold equities,” Chief Executive Nikolai Zelenski said in a statement.

“Nordgold has determined that it would therefore not be sensible to pursue an IPO at this particular juncture,” he said.

The company, which operates gold miners in Russia, Kazakhstan, Burkina Faso and Guinea, did not say when it would be willing to offer its shares again.