OzForex shares jump on debut following $416m IPO

The stock reached A$2.59 apiece on Friday, a 29.5% premium to its issue price of A$2 a share. As of afternoon trading on Tuesday, the stock was at A$2.79.

The IPO - Australia's largest of the year - represented a full exit for Carlyle, Macquarie and Accel. According to the IPO prospectus, they held 20.4%, 19.9% and 22.7% stakes in the company, respectively. Founders Gary Lord and Matt Gilmour retain a 4% stake.

OzForex was established in Sydney in 1998, with a view to tapping the growing market for international remittances. The company now has more than 350,000 clients globally and executes over 500,000 money transfers per year, 85% of which are conducted online.

It has partnerships with Moneygram and Travelex and last year moved A$12 billion in international funds. Pre-tax profit for the year ended March 2013 came to A$24.2 million.

Accel and Carlyle invested an undisclosed sum in the company in November, 2010, in return for a minority stake. The capital was intended to support the company's expansion into North America, Europe and Asia, as well as fund the development of complementary products and services.

This IPO exceeds the A$339 million raised by fertility service providers Virtus Health in July, which allowed a full exit by Quadrant Private Equity. According to AVCJ Research, PE-backed IPOs in Australasia reached their highest quarterly level in three years between April and June this year. In 2012 as a whole, three offerings raised $156 million between them.

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• Topics
• Exits
• Australasia
• Financials
• Technology
• The Carlyle Group
• Accel Partners
• Macquarie Group
• IPO
• Exit
• Technology
• Australia