Pillar share offer is five times subscribed

THE PUBLIC offer of shares in Pillar, the commercial and retail property company, was four times oversubscribed, writes Robert Cole.

The company offered 15 million shares for sale to the public and received applications for 75 million to raise pounds 47m in the float. The initial market capitalisation of the company will be pounds 90m.

Pillar, which owns 26 properties in the UK including one in Northern Ireland, is run by Raymond Mould and Patrick Vaughan, chairman and chief executive respectively. In 1976 the two established Arlington Properties, which was floated with a value of pounds 55m in 1986. The following year Arlington raised pounds 55m in a rights issue and in 1989 it was sold to British Aerospace for pounds 278m.

A quarter of the shares on offer were made available to the public and the rest were placed with institutions. Applications will be scaled back so that those seeking between 200 and 400 shares will receive 200 each. Those who applied for 2,000-15,000 will get 20 per cent of their application and those who wanted more than 30,000 will receive 15 per cent.

The flotation price is 150p and dealings begin next Monday.