Nucleus set to float on AIM - reports
‘£150m valuation’
Nucleus Financial is set to float in London in the coming week in a deal that "could value it at £150m", according to reports. The platform, which has thousands of IFA clients, has more than £13.5bn of assets under administration.
According to Sky News, Nucleus intends to unveil an initial public offering on the junior AIM market on 2 July, with the deal involving raising "about £25m" from the sale of shares in the Edinburgh-based business.
Why the sudden craze for platform floats?
Reports in March indicating Nucleus - which is led by chief executive David Ferguson (pictured) - would float this year suggested it would be unlikely to involve the company selling new shares but would allow it to provide liquidity for shareholders.
This coincided with IntegraFin Holdings, which runs the Transact platform, floating on the London Stock Exchange while AJ Bell is said to be exploring a floatation as ‘a natural next step'.
Speaking at the time, NextWealth MD Heather Hopkins suggested the increased activity was a sign of a healthy market and described the success of Transact's initial public offering as a catalyst.
"Shareholders of other platforms will have seen the price the float has secured, piquing interest in realising a pay-out," she told Professional Adviser. "But in the case of AJ Bell and Nucleus, the [reported] plans to float come as little surprise. The only surprise is the precise timing."
She added: "I have long said we will see further consolidation of platforms. Transact's float set a price for that business, which helps to define a price for other platform businesses too. And the fact investment banks have been crawling all over platforms should naturally lead to more M&A activity."
