Picklive reveals public floatation plans
Fantasy sports operator looks to raise £5m by listing on London's AIM as Nektan shares open for trading
Picklive has become the latest online gaming company to announce a public floatation with the fantasy sports operator hoping to raise around £5m through a listing on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM).
The listing, which is being managed by ZAI Corporate Finance, will value the firm at £10m with the raised funds raised set to be used to develop new ice hockey and cricket games to complement its current portfolio of football, baseball and NFL products.
The London-headquartered firm, which is headed up by CEO David Galan, plans to increase its international reach beyond its core UK base and its recent launch into the lucrative US market where it teamed-up with pools operator Sportech.
“In the US we have a strong partnership with Sportech, where we have recently launched our American football and baseball game,” Galan said.
“We believe that this is the opportune moment to seek a listing on AIM to accelerate the company’s growth, drive Picklive’s highly-scalable proprietary technology platform and develop global appeal,” he added.
News of Picklive’s intention to float comes as Nektan this morning began trading on AIM after having announced plans to do so last month.
The B2B mobile gaming platform provider raised £4.1m at a placing of 236p per share with the funds to be put towards product development and working capital.
“Admission to AIM is a significant milestone Nektan’s development, and will assist in enhancing the Group’s credibility within commercial discussions,” Gary Shaw, executive chairman of Nektan, said.
“The funds raised will in part be used expand Nektan’s mobile gaming suite, and the Group is now well positioned to capture significant growth opportunities in the fastest growing segment in gaming,” Shaw added.
According to Simon French, financial analyst at Cenkos Securities, gaming-related IPOs could become more frequent with investors looking upon opportunities within the sector more favourably.
“Investors continue to be attracted to companies that can offer differentiated exposure to the gambling sector either through technology, geography or both,” French said.