The €1.8bn IPO of Francaise Des Jeux was the big winner in this year’s poll of market participants and was lauded as one of Europe’s most celebrated privatisations in years.
The transaction, which was a key part of French president Emmanuel Macron’s privatisation plans and was a boon not only for French but European ECM, ending the year with an important, strategic deal.
The government sold 81.12m shares in the IPO, 42.5% of FDJ’s share capital. It was the largest French IPO in more than two years and one of the largest European deals of 2019.
The IPO was not only successful because it allowed the French state to achieve its objectives in privatising FDJ, but also, through a large retail tranche, allowed French citizens to take a stake in the operator of the country’s national lottery.
The government sold 36.5m shares in the retail offering for €712m, but there was €1.6bn of demand. After the IPO French retail investors owned around 20% of FDJ.
The market voted the listing as its ECM Deal of the Year, its IPO of the Year, Privitisation of the Year and ECM Deal of the Year in France.
Great chemistry
The proceeds will develop a new drug, which the pair hope will revolutionise cancer treatment. The trade impressed not only for its size, but also because it was done on a day of heightened market volatility as the then UK government attempted to push a Brexit bill through parliament.
The banks on the deal worked through the night to prepare the trade, leading to an early covered message, politics meant that price guidance had to be delayed until after the vote that afternoon.
Morgan Stanley, one of the two banks on the deal was also a big winner in this year’s awards. The bank picked up the award for Equity Capital Markets Bank of the Year and was also recognised as ECM bank of the year for rights issues and strategic capital raising as well as Equity Capital Markets Bank of the Year in Iberia. GlobalCapital’s editorial team decided which banks won awards after an extensive research and pitching process.
Goldman Sachs, the other bank on the AstraZeneca deal, won the award for Block Trade Bank of the Year and Citi picked up the award for IPO Bank of the Year for the second year in a row.
Cellnex Telecom, the acquisitive Spanish telecom towers operator, was also a well-liked issuer in this year’s awards, winning three. The company’s €850m convertible bond in June won the award for Equity-Linked Bond Deal of the Year while its €2.5bn rights issue on the 31 October won two awards: Best Equity Capital Raising by a Listed Company and ECM Deal of the Year in Iberia.
The hugely popular rights issue attracted over €100bn of demand for a €2.5bn deal with sources close to the transaction saying it was “standing room” only in every meeting.
HSBC powers up
Société Générale retained its crown as Equity Capital Markets Bank of the Year in France and the Benelux, continuing its leadership in the region across all products.
Barclays won the award for Equity Capital Markets Bank of the Year in the UK and Ireland. The IPO of Trainline, the UK transport booking website, won the award for ECM Deal of the Year in the UK and Ireland as well as the award for Technology or Biotech IPO of the Year.
The transaction was one of the most popular of last year pricing near the top of its price range, having attracted stock orders from around 270 investors. The deal also surged in trading on its first day rising 24% above its IPO price.
The historic IPO of Saudi Aramco was recognised as Most Innovative ECM Deal. Despite not being the internationally distributed IPO that many had imagined it would be, the sale was still a momentous event for the market.
The oil giant opted to sell to mainly domestic investors more willing to match its own valuation. However, large number of international investors also registered as Qualified Foreign Investors (QFIs) in the country, in anticipation of the IPO, adding to the numbers which can now buy Saudi stocks. Sources close to the deal say it also transformed the Tadawul exchange into a more sophisticated marketplace for share dealing.
GlobalCapital also recognised French renewable energy company Noeon and a €200m convertible bond it issued on October 2 2019, as the inaugural winner of the award for Most Impressive Sustainable ECM deal.
The proceeds are being used to finance the company’s growth towards a capacity target of more than 5GW to be under construction or operational by 2021.
Please click on this link for a full list of our winners.