Retail investors lose out on Equiniti flotation

Royal Mail is among the blue-chip companies served by the payments company

Your pension is in the post: Royal Mail is among the blue-chip companies served by the payments company Euiniti (PA)

Thousands of retail investors were out of pocket as the float of share payments company Equiniti bombed in the City.

The Sussex-based Equiniti, which administers shares and pensions for around 70 blue-chip businesses, including Marks & Spencer and Royal Mail, was recently described by its chief executive Guy Wakeley as “kind of a hidden gem”.

However, the shares were priced at a bottom-of-the-range 165p, valuing the company at £495m, and quickly sank another 8.48 per cent, or 14p, to 151p.

Sources said that retail investors had pumped in £12m of the £315m raised in the float by private equity owner Advent, subscribing for up to £10,000 each.

Advent, which bought the company from Lloyds TSB in 2007, will be left with a stake of up to 32 per cent following the float, although it also bought £75m in new shares.

Banks including Goldman Sachs, Barclays and Credit Suisse brought Equiniti to market.

Equiniti, based in Lancing, started life administering British Army pensions in 1836.

“We have always felt that Equiniti belongs in the public markets, and I am delighted that our new and existing shareholders have supported this,” said Mr Wakeley.

“We have longstanding working relationships with 70 per cent of the FTSE 100 and our IPO further aligns us with these clients and the markets we serve.”

He added: “We believe that Equiniti is well positioned to benefit from increasing legislation, regulation and digitalisation, which drives corporates and governments to outsource complex, mission-critical services.”