FRANKFURT\/LONDON (Reuters) – Swedish payments firm Trustly plans to take advantage of a surge in digital transactions in the COVID-19 pandemic with a second-quarter flotation that could value it at up to 9 billion euros ($11 billion), people close to the matter said.<\/p>\n
The initial public offering (IPO), likely in Stockholm, is one of a number of technology listings expected in Europe as investors flock to growth stocks in strong equity markets.<\/p>\n
Trustly\u2019s owner, buyout group Nordic Capital, is working with Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Carnegie and is in the process of hiring more banks with a view to launching the IPO in late April or early May, the sources said.<\/p>\n
The company could be valued at 6-8 billion euros, two of the people said, while another said it might fetch 7-9 billion.<\/p>\n
Trustly\u2019s revenues were around 130 million euros in 2019 and will be around 200 million euros for 2020 on a \u201cdouble digit\u201d core earnings (EBITDA) margin, one of them added.<\/p>\n
Nordic Capital and the banks declined to comment.<\/p>\n
The appeal of financial technology companies has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic as more people shop online and make payments digitally to avoid physical contact.<\/p>\n
Elsewhere, payments firm Transferwise is preparing a stock market listing in Britain with the help of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Barclays that could value it at significantly more than the $5 billion suggested by a 2020 fundraising, according to a source familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n
Many fintech firms simultaneously explore an IPO and a deal with a special purpose acquisition company, which raises money in an IPO and then buys a private firm to give it a listing.<\/p>\n
Last month, such a \u201cblank-check\u201d acquisition firm backed by veteran investor Bill Foley agreed to merge with Paysafe, valuing the payments platform at around $9 billion.<\/p>\n
In a further sign of investors\u2019 interest in payments firms, shares of Canadian payment processing firm Nuvei jumped more than 30% on their debut in September and have now risen by 64% since their listing. Shares of European peer Nexi have climbed more than 20% over the last 12 months.<\/p>\n
Trustly, founded in 2008 and with offices in Sweden, Spain, Malta, Germany and Britain, processes more than 4 million payments per month.<\/p>\n
Nordic Capital bought a 70% stake in the company in 2018 at a valuation of roughly 700 million euros and merged it with U.S.-based PayWithMyBank in 2019.<\/p>\n
In June 2020, Trustly was reportedly valued at about $2 billion in a financing round that included BlackRock, Investment Corporation of Dubai, Aberdeen Standard Investments, Neuberger Berman, and Retirement System Investment Commission.<\/p>\n