The planned initial public offering (IPO) for e-commerce website bol.com has been delayed, or possibly cancelled, as parent company Ahold Delhaize looks to move cautiously amid the current economic climate, according to media reports.
The company was expected to launch an IPO this year, but an update on the decision is set to be announced alongside the retailer's results from the second quarter of the year on 10 August.
Bol.com IPO Delayed
In 2021, Ahold Delhaize announced it would go public with bol.com in the second half of 2022.
The retail chain, which operates in the United States and Europe, said it would retain control over the online platform in the years to come, as it would only list a limited number of shares.
The move would provide funding for the group, while fuelling the growth potential of Bol.com, the owner of the Stop & Shop, Giant, Food Lion, and Hannaford chains said.
The announcement was met with much curiosity at the time, as many other e-commerce groups has suffered on the stock market or had cancelled planned IPOs.
E-Commerce Decline
The decline in e-commerce sales after a very high peak as a result of COVID-19 has been suggested as a possible reason for the lack of update, according to a report in the publication Retail Detail.
The report quoted a spokesperson from Ahold Delhaize, who spoke to Belgian newspaper De Tijd, saying, “We are fully focused on finding the right way to create value for Bol.com and Ahold Delhaize.”
© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest technology news. Article by Conor Farrelly. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
