Poundland’s owner, Steinhoff International, is postponing a potential sale or flotation of its European arm amid uncertainty relating to coronavirus and the unrelated illness of boss Andy Bond.

Pepco Europe, which has about 2,800 stores including Poundland in the UK and the Pepco and Dealz chains in Europe, was expected to finalise a takeover deal or IPO later this year after Steinhoff confirmed it was evaluating options for the group in November.

But the company has decided to delay the process partly because Bond, who previously ran Asda and is a shareholder in Pepco Europe, is taking a two-month leave of absence for treatment for a medical condition, which is not linked to coronavirus.

The delay has also been prompted by volatility in both the retail market and stock markets, as countries around the world struggle to cope with the coronavirus pandemic. Steinhoff was seeking to value the business at more than €4bn (£3.5bn), according to Bloomberg, which first reported the delay.

The pause to Steinhoff’s plans raises the prospect that other potential retail IPOs in the UK will be put on hold amid the fallout from Covid-19, including Travis Perkins’s plan to demerge DIY chain Wickes.

Retailers are taking a hit from slower spending on nonessential items such as clothing and homewares, partly as people avoid high streets and other busy areas in an attempt to avoid contracting the coronavirus.

Interruption to the production of goods in China is also expected to affect supplies in Europe from Easter, usually one of the busiest trading periods of the year.

The coronavirus outbreak has added to existing pressures, including the switch to online shopping, as well as rising costs from business rates, increases in the legal minimum wage and the fall in the value of the pound since the 2016 Brexit vote.

Steinhoff had hoped to offload the Pepco group as part of a massive overhaul that was kicked off by an accounting scandal at the South African parent group in 2017. Steinhoff has already sold off assets including Bensons for Beds and Harveys in the UK.

As part of its preparations for independence from Steinhoff, Pepco had refinanced with a €475m loan and further €130m credit facility. It has also been approaching landlords in an attempt to cut rents by as much as a quarter as it renegotiates leases on nearly 90% of its stores over the next five years.