LONDON (Alliance News) - Used car dealership and WeBuyAnyCar.com owner BCA Marketplace PLC saw its shares rise as it was admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market Thursday, while fellow car-dealership Marshall Motor Holdings PLC also saw its shares rise as it joined Motif Bio PLC in being admitted to London's junior AIM market.
BCA Marketplace was formed just last week when Haversham Holdings bought BCA Group for GBP1.23 billion. Haversham was created last year by Avril Palmer-Baunack and Marwyn Value Investors Ltd, the specialist investment management company, with the support of institutional investors including Invesco, Artemis, Aviva and Schroders, with the specific aim of finding an investment in the UK and European automotive, support services, leasing, engineering or manufacturing sectors.
Palmer-Baunack may be most well-known for a short stint as executive chairman of Stobart Group Ltd, but she also chairs vehicle tracking systems company Quartix Holdings PLC and was previously chief executive of Universal Salvage PLC and Autologic PLC.
Haversham raised GBP1.03 billion in a share placing at 150 pence a share to fund the GBP1.23 billion deal. It paid a share consideration of GBP104.5 million through the issue of 69.5 million shares, and the remainder was funded in cash from the placing and a new GBP200 million loan facility.
BCA Marketplace shares were trading at 157 pence Thursday morning.
Marshall Motor Holdings, a car dealership chain selling new and used cars as well as repair and bodyshops, began trading on AIM after raising GBP36.9 million through the placing of 26.8 million shares at 149 pence each, giving it an initial market capitalisation of around GBP115.1 million.
Its shares were trading at 163 pence in early dealings Thursday.
It will use the proceeds of its initial public offering to fund acquisition opportunities and invest in its existing operations, including investments in its website and e-commerce capabilities.
"We have been delighted by the investor support for our admission to AIM. Our IPO is the culmination of many months' hard work and means Marshall Motor Holdings is well positioned to deliver continued strong growth," said Chief Executive Officer of Marshall Daksh Gupta in a statement.
Drugs developer Motif Bio also began trading on AIM Thursday, having raised GBP2.8 million through the issue of 12.49 million shares at 20 pence, giving it a market capitalisation of around GBP12.8 million.
Its shares were trading at 33.69 pence in early dealings,
Motif plans to use the proceeds to complete preparations to enter phase III trials with its lead antibiotic candidate iclaprim. The company believes the iclaprim could be ready for commercialisation within three years.
The product is designed to be effective against multi-drug resistant bacteria, tapping into the growing concern over antibiotic resistant bacteria.
"With a new antibiotic at this stage of readiness, Motif is well placed to benefit from the looming public health crisis by developing novel antibiotics designed to be effective against multi-drug resistant bacteria," said Chief Executive Officer Graham Lumsden in a statement.
Amphion Innovations, a 44.09% stakeholder in Motif, noted the flotation. Amphion also has a convertible loan of USD3.55 million in Motif.
Shares in Amphion Innovations are trading down 14.6% at 6.94 pence Thursday morning.
By Hana Stewart-Smith; hanassmith@alliancenews.com; @HanaSSAllNews
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