Athens airport IPO attracts strong demand
written by Bella PalmerThe offering comes after a lull of two years for IPOs in Europe, as soaring debt costs and geopolitical uncertainty dampened sentiment towards new stock listings
The initial public offering (IPO) of a 30% stake in Athens International Airport, Greece's largest gateway for tourists, attracted strong demand, the airport said on Friday, marking the first successful launch of a major IPO in Europe this year.
The offering, which started on January 25 and closed on Thursday, comes after a lull of two years for IPOs in Europe, as soaring debt costs and geopolitical uncertainty dampened sentiment towards new stock listings.
Last year was the worst for global IPOs since 2009 with $120 billion raised, per Dealogic data.
Greece's privatisation agency (HRADF) is selling 90 million shares, through a combined offering to Greek and foreign investors and existing shareholders, in the country's biggest initial public offering since its 2010-2018 debt crisis.
Investors' orders topped €8.6 billion (£7.34 billion), the airport said in a statement, adding that the offer was priced at €8.20 (£7.00) per share, at the upper end of the range of €7.00 to €8.20 (£632.15 to £740.52), valuing the whole company at €2.46 billion (£222.16 billion).
Greece is a top tourist destination in the Mediterranean and Athens airport handled over 28 million passengers last year, accounting for 35% of passenger traffic through all the nation's airports.
HRADF will raise €785 million (£70891 million) from the deal, as AviAlliance, which holds a 40% stake in the airport, has agreed to buy a further 10% at €9.758 (£881.22) per share, a premium over the IPO price, the airport added.
Shares were expected to begin trading on the Athens Stock Exchange (ASE) on February 7.
Investment bankers hope a stabilisation of interest rates in 2024 will encourage new listings. German perfume retailer Douglas is considering going public in Q1 of the year, Reuters reported in January.
On Monday, Kazakhstan's Air Astana set the price range for joint stock exchange listings in London and its home market.
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