(Bloomberg) -- Affin Bank Bhd. is considering an initial public offering of its asset management unit that could raise about 500 million ringgit ($123 million), people familiar with the matter said.

The Malaysian lender is working with advisers on the potential listing for Affin Hwang Asset Management Bhd. in Kuala Lumpur as soon as the second half of next year, the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

Deliberations are at an early stage, and there’s no certainty they will lead to a transaction, the people said. Representatives for Affin did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Affin Bank owns 63% of Affin Hwang Asset Management, according to its 2019 annual report. The investment manager also counts Japan’s Nikko Asset Management International Ltd. as a shareholder, the website of an affiliated unit shows.

Affin Hwang is Malaysia’s third largest money manager by assets, after Public Mutual Bhd. and Principal Asset Management Bhd., according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It manages over 60 billion ringgit worth of assets as of June 30, 2020, according to its official website.

A successful listing would help boost Malaysia’s first-time share sale market, which has raised $477 million in IPOs so far this year, already 4.5% above last year’s total.

Affin Hwang Asset Management contributed profit before tax of 84.2 million ringgit to Affin in the nine-month period ended Sept. 30, a 13.6% increase from 74.1 million ringgit the same period a year ago, according to Affin’s latest financial statement. The company attributed the increase mainly to higher fee and commission income, the statement showed.

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