Update | Just how much is China’s richest man willing to pay to delist Wanda Commercial from Hong Kong?

The market is anxiously waiting for Dalian Wanda Commercial Properties, controlled by China’s richest man Wang Jianlin, to finalise an offer price for existing shareholders in Hong Kong for delisting the share in the city after just 15 months of its listing here.

The shares were suspended on Monday morning following a request by the company to the Hong Kong stock exchange “pending the publication of an announcement pursuant to the Hong Kong Code on Takeovers and Mergers”.

On March 30, Wanda Commercial said it is in the “preliminary phase” of considering a voluntary general offer for the company’s H shares in Hong Kong, which could result in privatisation. The price would not be less than HK$48, according to its filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange, making the total capital needed for the offer HK$31.3 billion.

The company has reportedly been looking to list in China’s A-share market as it feels it is undervalued in Hong Kong.

Wanda Commercial’s share has surged 32 per cent since it announced the potential privatisation, closing at HK$51.25 on Friday in Hong Kong. Before the announcement, it had fallen 19 per cent from its December 2014 initial public offering price of HK$48.

The market widely expects Wanda Commercial to raise the buyout price as cornerstone investors are unlikely to let it go for HK$48, the same price they paid at its listing nearly a year and a half ago.