The £2bn flotation of Vector, Britain’s first hotel-based real estate investment trust, was pulled on Wednesday, even though its backers slashed the launch price on Tuesday night.

The postponement is likely to prove an embarrassment for Richard Balfour-Lynn, the property entrepreneur who staked his credibility on the venture. It is also a setback for non-executive director David Michels, former chief executive of Hilton, and for Vector’s advisers Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and UBS.