Canadian wealth manager CI Financial's U.S. unit confidentially files for IPO

(Reuters) - Canada's CI Financial Corp said on Thursday its U.S. unit had confidentially filed for an initial public offering in the United States, more than eight months after the wealth management firm announced plans for a spin-off.

The move comes against the backdrop of a punishing year for IPOs as financial markets have been roiled by the Federal Reserve's rate-hike campaign and fears of a recession.

On Nasdaq alone, the capital raised through stock listings has fallen by nearly 91%, the exchange operator said last week.

In April, CI Financial said it would spin off up to 20% of the unit but hold on to its remaining stake. Proceeds from the IPO would be used to pay down debt, it added.

As of Nov. 30, the U.S. wealth management unit had $183.3 billion of assets under management.

Shares of CI Financial have nearly halved so far this year.

(Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva)