BILLIONAIRE Wang Jianlin’s Dalian Wanda Group Co. is in takeover talks with several candidates to be the conglomerate’s vehicle to list its property unit domestically, according to people familiar with the matter.

    Wanda is still holding talks with other potential targets for a backdoor listing of Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties Co. after Shenzhen-listed Beijing Soft Rock Investment Group Corp. said Monday that it had scrapped an asset-swap deal with Dalian Wanda, said the sources.

    The sources declined to name the backdoor listing candidates and Wanda declined to comment on any targets.

    A backdoor listing is when a company takes control of a publicly traded firm to bypass the screening process involved in an initial public offering.

    Beijing Soft Rock said in a statement Monday that it had been in discussions with Dalian Wanda Group to issue company shares in exchange for all the shares in Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties.

    “After repeated discussion, all the parties were not able to reach consensus on the timetable of the asset restructure,” said the company, whose shares were suspended from Sept. 26 till Nov. 22.

    But Wanda said Tuesday that it had not had any formal negotiations with Beijing Soft Rock regarding the restructuring.

    Wang delisted Wanda Commercial from the Hong Kong stock exchange two months ago as he searches for higher valuations on the mainland.

    Still, he’s under pressure to list the property company on the mainland within two years or face having to repay his investment partners more than US$5 billion. (SD-Agencies)