MANCHESTER UNITED’S planned €1.1bn flotation has been approved by the Singapore stock exchange but may be delayed if volatile market conditions do not improve.

Bankers acting for the Glazer family are now expected to prepare the ground for the initial public offering (IPO) in the hope of bringing a stake in the club to market this year. The structure of has not been made public, but it is thought that the Glazers will float up to 35 per cent using a structure that enables them to retain up to 88 per cent of the voting rights.

A source close to the discussions said that the Glazers were in no hurry and are prepared to wait until market conditions are more favourable.

It is understood the Glazers will use the money raised to pay down debt but there has been no clarity on whether they will also use some of the proceeds to pay off any loans they took out to clear another €258 million in high-interest payment-in-kind debt that sat on the balance sheet of the club’s holding company until last year.

It is expected the listing will involve a complicated mixture of primary shares, new shares which would dilute the Glazers’ interests, with the money going to the company, and secondary shares, which would involve the sale of existing shares, with the proceeds going directly to the Americans.

Opponents of the Glazer family have already called on them to use the money raised to clear United’s debt, reduced to €352m in the most recent accounts, released earlier this month. However. it is not known how the owners managed to pay off €252m of payment-in-kind notes last year.

Meanwhile, United have privately dismissed renewed speculation about a potential €1.7bn sale to the Qatari Royal Family.