(Adds details, closing share price in paragraph 1 and Australian IPO market context in paragraphs 8-9) By Scott Murdoch SYDNEY, July 3 (Reuters) - Shares of GemLife Communities Group closed 4.1% higher on Thursday, after the Australian retirement resort operator debuted on the Australian Securities Exchange following a A$750 million ($493.1 million) initial public offering. GemLife's stock climbed as much as 7.5% to A$4.47 during its debut session, before easing in the afternoon. The company sold 380.3 million stapled securities at A$4.16 each, giving it a valuation of A$1.58 billion, according to a term sheet seen by Reuters. The deal marks the largest IPO in Australia so far in 2025, topping the recent A$685 million transaction from Virgin Australia , the country's second-largest airline. Virgin shares have been trading about 4% above their A$2.90 issue price since the debut on June 24. GemLife operates 14 retirement communities along Australia's east coast, according to its website. It recorded A$266.3 million in revenue and an A$81.7 million underlying net profit in the past financial year, its prospectus showed. Initial public offerings in Australia totalled $795 million in the first half of 2025, according to LSEG data, an increase of nearly 150% year-on-year. Australia's sluggish IPO market in recent years has prompted regulators to introduce new rules aimed at fast-tracking the filing process in an effort to revive listing activity. ($1 = 1.5209 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Scott Murdoch and Himanshi Akhand; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Sherry Jacob-Phillips) ((Scott.Murdoch@thomsonreuters.com;)) Keywords: GEMLIFE TRADING/ (UPDATE 2, PIX)
