Equiniti PLC (LON;EQN), the share registrar for hundreds of companies, is set to be the latest listed business to fall into private equity hands.
Reports today suggested that Siris, a tech-focused PE group, had tabled an offer worth 170p per share in cash, sending its share price rocketing by 43%.
According to Sky News, Siris has made several offers for Equiniti in recent months and its latest proposal would value it around £600mln.
Guy Wakeley, the chief executive since the group listed in 2015, resigned last month with Paul Lynam from Secure Trust Bank appointed to be his replacement.
The company provides a range of share-related services such as dividend payment and is used by more than 70 FTSE 100 companies but warned in November that trading has been challenging since the outbreak of COVID-19.
Revenues from interest receivables and the commission and fee-based income related to capital market activity particularly had been affected, it said in a trading update.
Liberum added: "We can understand why Equiniti would prove attractive to private equity given the recurring revenue base, strong market position, improving outlook and attractive valuation."
Shares in Equiniti today rose to 162.6p.