After months of depressed activity, illiquidity fears and a number of delistings, AIM has announced its first flotation of 2009.
Property investment firm Max Property Group began unconditional trading yesterday morning, after raising £220m on its admission to the AIM market.
Marcus Stuttard, head of AIM, part of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) Group, hoped the new listing would ease fears of a lack of available finance on the market.
“I am delighted to welcome Max Property Group to AIM,” said Stuttard.
“This admission demonstrates that despite difficult global market conditions our markets remain very much open for business.”
AIM listings, which peaked at almost 1,700 in December 2007, have currently fallen to around 1,450.
Commentators have blamed a shortage of finance on the market, which has made the cost of joining the market and then maintaining a listing (estimated at around £150,000 a year) seem prohibitive.
However, Stuttard insisted that AIM is still a desirable place for ambitious businesses looking for growth capital.
He said: “AIM remains the world’s most successful growth market, providing high-growth businesses with access to capital, both at IPO and via further issues, through which over £660m has been raised so far this year.”
Alastair Fairbrother, a spokesperson for the LSE, added that while this is the first Initial Public Offering (IPO) on AIM in 2009, there was still plenty of activity on the LSE markets.
“Investors are supplying large amounts of capital to existing companies and there are companies moving between markets – three have moved from AIM to the Main board this year and 12 during 2008,” he said.
Max Property Group, run by serial entrepreneur Nick Leslau, plans to exploit current weaknesses in the UK commercial property market through a strategy of asset management and acquisitions.
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2009