Bankia gets share offer underway
SPANISH lender Bankia is expected to publish the prospectus for its €4bn (£3.6bn) initial public offering (IPO) today, as bankers begin bookbuilding in a deal viewed as one of the most important cash raisings in Europe this year.
A smooth listing of the caja would lend support to the Spanish government’s overhaul of the banking sector and would be viewed as a bellwether moment for the future of the Eurozone’s banks.
Such is the importance placed on a successful listing that a pulled IPO may contribute to an early election in the country, banking and political sources say. “It’s the most important deal I’ve ever worked on,” a senior banker on the deal told City A.M..
Bankia, formed from seven regional savings banks, plans to raise up to €4bn by listing about 40 per cent of its capital to plug a capital hole after the state forced unlisted cajas to get private capital on board or face nationalisation.
The lender, which last week delayed the publication of its prospectus, will set the final price for its shares on 14 July and make its stock market debut on 18 July.