Float nets Brit’s private equity owners £235m

Lloyd’s insurer Brit has floated on the London Stock Exchange with a market capitalisation of £960m.

The initial public offering (IPO) comprises 100 million shares at 240p a share, producing £240m of gross proceeds for the sellers – private equity firms Apollo and CVC.

Net proceeds from the offer are £235m.

The offer price is at the high end of the expected range of 235p to 240p a share.

Once the company starts unconditional trading next Wednesday, it will have 400m shares in issue at 240p a share, generating the £960m market capitalisation.

Brit chief executive Mark Cloutier said: “I am pleased that our offering has been well received by investors. Having transformed Brit into a successful global specialty insurer operating solely through Lloyd’s of London, we have built a strong foundation for future profitable growth and continued success.”

In addition to the 400m shares in the issue, there is an over-allotment option of 10m shares, which can be exercised over the next 30 days to reduce volatility in Brit’s share price.

Investment bank JP Morgan is the sole sponsor, joint global co-ordinator and joint bookrunner for the issue. Fellow bank UBS is joint global co-ordinator and joint bookrunner, and stockbrokers Canaccord Genuity and Numis Securities are co-lead managers.