(Alliance News) - National World PLC, a acquisition vehicle focused on news publishing businesses, on Monday said it will seek a listing on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange.
National World said it would list 54 million shares but provided no other financial details of the planned initial public offering.
The company is led by David Montgomery, the former boss of The Mirror Group, now rebranded as Reach PLC. It aims to transform the news publishing sector through acquisitions and partnerships.
National World Chair Montgomery said: "Our objective is to create a modern platform for news publishing by implementing a new operating model, powered by the latest technology. National World will jettison legacy systems and archaic industrial practices to create efficient dissemination of news, monetising it by matching content to audience. With the relevant technology embedded in National World it is intended to deploy these capabilities across news publishing assets, whether acquired by the company or via partnerships."
The company's management also includes Vijay Vaghela, who served as non-executive director at Local World, a local news network formed by Montgomery. Its board will comprise of Mark Hollinshead, Steve Barber and John Rowe as non-executive directors who also have considerable and relevant experience in publishing and digital technology focused on monetisation of scale audiences.
National World plans to fund future acquisitions by issue of further equity and, where appropriate, utilising debt. Dealings in the company's shares is expected to start on Thursday.
Reach Plc (RCH)