Government beefs up adviser panel for AIB flotation

The Department of Finance has appointed an additional six financial groups to advise it on a possible initial public offering (IPO) of shares in AIB on the Dublin and London stock markets this year.

The department has appointed Citigroup Global Markets, Goldman Sachs International, Goodbody Stockbrokers, JP Morgan and UBS as bookrunners for an IPO, and Investec Bank as co-lead manager.

The bookrunners and the co-lead manager will assist with the marketing and sale of shares in AIB. This is to ensure coverage of the broadest possible range of relevant investors both by type and geography.

Mini-tender competition

The appointments follow a mini-tender competition earlier this month of the members of lot three of the department’s capital markets distribution panel, which was set up in 2014.

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The companies have been appointed until July 2018. This provides the State with flexibility on the timing of any IPO over the next 16 months.

In December, the department appointed Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Davy and Deutsche Bank as joint global co-ordinators and bookrunners for a potential IPO of AIB.

Rothschild had previously been appointed as an independent financial adviser for this project.

PR advisers

Dublin-based Gordon MRM and Citigate Dewe Rogerson were also recently appointed as joint public relations advisers for the transaction.

Minister for Finance Michael Noonan has said that May/June of this year offers the first window of opportunity for an IPO of AIB shares. The Government would be expected to offer a 25 per cent stake in the bank to institutional and retail investors.

AIB has been conducting so-called non-deal roadshows with investors to set out the investment case behind the bank. It met investors in New York last week and also held meetings in London this week on the fringe of a financial conference organised by Morgan Stanley.

It is expected to host more meetings in Dublin next week.