EasyHotel raises £30m in IPO to fund expansion
Budget group EasyHotel has raised £30m, half the amount it had set out to achieve last month when it announced its launch on to the stock market. Shares in the Initial Public Offering (IPO) have been priced at 80p.
However, the company's market capitalisation is £50m, amounting to 150% of its pre-IPO equity valuation of £20m.
EasyHotel is a sister brand to budget airline easyJet , within umbrella company easyGroup Holdings.
The new £30m equity will be used to finance the company's expansion of the easyHotel brand, which currently has 19 hotels, including two wholly-owned freehold properties in Glasgow and London's Old Street and 17 franchised hotels. Eight are in the UK (Edinburgh, Glasgow, Luton and five in London), with the rest across Europe, Dubai and South Africa. It also has one long leasehold development site.
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder of easyHotel, said that the backing of institutional investors will enable to brand to "grow and prosper" as an independent company.
"This is a great business model which will continue to prosper as it grows and meets the demand of budget conscious travellers around Europe and beyond. The transparency and scrutiny of the public markets will also allow me to step back from the company and enable me to focus on continuing my diversification strategy into other business and philanthropic activities. I anticipate I will remain a significant and supportive shareholder for a very long time."
Trading in easyHotel's shares on the Alternative Investment Market will begin on 30 June.
EasyHotel to float on stock market to fund expansion >>
