London set for surge of IPO activity
THE CITY is gearing up for a return of initial public offering (IPO) activity as a torrent of companies prepare to take the plunge into shareholder ownership, according to Thomson Reuters data.
Underscoring the dramatic recovery being staged on equity markets, five IPOs – where firms listed on stock markets – are now on the books for the third quarter of this year alone.
Gambling website Betfair has a listing on the main London Stock Exchange (LSE) planned for this quarter, expected to raise a giant £1.5bn. Pets At Home, the shopping website, is expected to raise around £700m with an LSE listing this quarter.
Property funds London Residential and Braemar UK Agricultural Land are to launch on the smaller AIM market and estate agent group Winkworth is to list shares this quarter.
And high street giant fashion retailer New Look, which is 60 per cent owned by private equity firms Permira and Apax, is gearing up a roughly £1.7bn market debut.
IPO activity dried up almost entirely in the credit crunch, as a lack of liquidity on markets and low company valuations deterred would-be market entrants. But private equity firms in particular are now carrying out IPOs of firms they own, hoping the increasingly liquid markets will provide a profitable investment exit.