London set to miss out on €20bn float of security group Verisure
The owners of Verisure, a provider of domestic alarm systems, are leaning towards a €20bn (£16.7bn) flotation in Amsterdam – a decision that would deliver another blow to London's hopes of capitalising on a revival in the market for major initial public offerings (IPOs).
Sky News has learnt Euronext Amsterdam is emerging as the likeliest destination for a listing of Verisure following preliminary talks with a group of investment banks angling to work on the deal.
Sources close to Verisure insisted on Monday no final decision about whether to proceed with an IPO, or its venue, had been taken.
They acknowledged the possibility of such an outcome, however, despite the efforts of stock exchanges in London, Stockholm and Zurich to position themselves for the flotation.
Money latest:
One said recent rule changes in the UK could yet tip the balance back in London's favour.
A number of Wall Street banks have pitched to work on the deal, Bloomberg News reported last week, while Sky News revealed in January were under way.
Verisure is majority-owned by the private equity firm Hellman & Friedman (H&F), with a listing unlikely until next year.
People close to Verisure said they expected that the company would be valued at more than €20bn, with some market sources suggesting the eventual figure could be as high as €30bn (£25.2bn).
That figure includes Verisure's debt, meaning that its equity market capitalisation would be smaller.
Verisure has roughly 5.5 million customers in 17 countries, including the UK, Brazil, Chile, Italy and the Netherlands.
Under Austin Lally, its chief executive, it has been transformed into a lucrative subscription model-based business pitching technologically advanced services to its customer base.
Four years ago, the company was responsible for a $2bn dividend payout to its owners.
News of Verisure's deliberations comes at an increasingly critical time for the London Stock Exchange.
David Schwimmer, the boss of its parent company, recently expressed confidence about its listings pipeline, although hopes that Shein, the Chinese-founded online fashion group, would stage a float in London this year have been buffeted by the early weeks of Donald Trump's presidency and protests about its alleged use of child labour in its supply chain.
Data compiled by EY, the professional services firm, showed that 2024 was among the quietest years on record for new issuance, with just eight new listings - and only three on the main market.
Just £778m in proceeds was raised during the year through IPOs, down 18% on the previous year.
At the same time, the momentum of companies drifting away from London has gathered pace with Ashtead, the equipment rental company, saying it would relocate its listing to New York.
Flutter Entertainment, the gambling group behind Paddy Power and Betfair, has already moved its primary listing to the US.
H&F, which ranks among the world's most successful buyout firms, became Verisure's majority shareholder in 2015 when it bought the stake held by Bain Capital, another private equity group.
At the time, the company was known as Securitas Direct Verisure Group, with it continuing to trade under the Securitas Direct brand in some markets.
A spokesman for Verisure declined to comment on Monday.
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