Waste management company Biffa has reportedly appointed financial advisory group Rothschild to prepare its listing for a public stock floatation next year.
The waste services company, which has been in existence for over 100 years, has been both a public and a private company in the last 10 years, with stocks first being floated in 2006 when Biffa demerged from Severn Trent plc. The company was then bought in 2008 by Montagu Private Equity, Global Infrastructure Partners and Halifax Bank of Scotland (private equity division), before it was sold to four more investment firms in 2012: Angelo, Gordon & Co; Avenue Capital Group; Babson Capital Europe Limited; and Sankaty Advisors.
However, Biffa’s Chief Executive, Ian Wakelin, told the Telegraph newspaper last month that the current hedge fund owners might not be long-term holders of the company, and that there would be potential for taking it public.
He said: “It’s been a public company before. I think it would be well positioned in the public arena. There’s only one other publicly-quoted company in the environmental services sector in the UK, which is Shanks Group.
“I do think that Biffa back in public hands would be an attractive investment, particularly with its growth potential. I think it would be a good place for the company to end up. For me, the most natural home for this business is back in the publicly-quoted environment.”
Sky News reported yesterday (17 May) that Rothschild is now preparing listings for a floatation that would take place ‘during the course of next year’. It suggested that the company would likely examine distributing shares to its workforce as part of any move to list on the stock market. However, it noted that an ‘outright sale’ may also be a possibility.
Resource contacted Rothschild for confirmation of its appointment, but the group said it could not comment. Biffa has also not commented on the reports.
Find out more about Ian Wakelin’s plans for the company.
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