LONDON, April 15 (Reuters) - Executives at CVC closely watched the conflict in the Middle East over the weekend as they prepared to unveil the buyout group's IPO plans, launching the deal on Monday only after assessing markets' reaction to the latest spike in tensions.
CVC Capital Partners said it planned to list its shares on Euronext Amsterdam, aiming to raise at least 1.25 billion euros ($1.33 billion) in one of the most highly anticipated initial public offerings in Europe this year.
"We've looked at the events over the weekend very, very carefully indeed," Chief Executive Rob Lucas told Reuters in an interview, referring to Iran's missile and drone attack on Israel on Saturday.
"But the interactions we've had with the investing community over the last weeks have been very strong... and that's given us the confidence to move forward today."
Sources have said the IPO, which confirms earlier reporting by Reuters in October, could value the private equity firm at more than 10 billion euros.
The buyout firm will now seek more granular feedback from prospective investors in order to price the IPO and start trading by next month, chief financial officer Fred Watt said.
CVC is the latest buyout group in Europe to attempt an IPO, following in the footsteps of rivals like Bridgepoint and EQT.
While it has been looking to launch an IPO for some time, unfavourable market conditions had prevented it from listing so far. It aborted its latest attempt in November after seeing turbulent markets rock other European IPOs.
Since then, global stocks have rallied as central banks signalled an end to interest rate hikes, with peer EQT rising almost 50% over the last six months.
Bankers are hopeful for a revival in new stock listings in the coming months, following a string of deals in the first quarter of the year.
But new listing performance has been mixed. Last month Galderma saw its shares soar on its market debut, while CVC-backed perfume retailer Douglas has traded below its issue price.
CVC, which manages 186 billion euros in assets and last year raised the world's largest buyout fund, is striving to transform itself into a diversified asset manager.
Last year, it announced a deal to acquire infrastructure manager DIF and completed a tie-up with secondaries manager Glendower.
Although it has extensive operations in the UK, CVC is headquartered in Luxembourg and plans to relocate to Jersey after the listing, a spokesperson for the group said.
Its decision to list in Amsterdam "underlines" its European heritage, CEO Lucas said, adding that it has been eyeing that trading venue for more than three years.
A public listing will help fuel CVC's growth, not just organically but also via acquisitions, Lucas said. No current employees, including Lucas and Watt, are selling shares as part of the deal.
"This is not a liquidity event for us. This is all about putting in place the long-term enduring capital structure for the business that will allow us to continue to power forward," Lucas said.
Other private capital managers could follow suit. U.S.-based General Atlantic is reportedly considering an IPO in New York.
Bridgepoint (BPT)
