Russian IT company Softline prices IPO of depositary receipts

Russian IT company Softline Group on Oct. 27 priced its London IPO at $7.50 per global depositary receipt, or GDR, for expected gross proceeds of $400 million.

Softline listed 53,333,334 GDRs representing newly issued ordinary shares. In addition, the company's existing shareholders also listed up to 8,000,000 GDRs as an overallotment option.

The GDRs will trade on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange, with a secondary listing on the Moscow Exchange.

Based on the offer price, Softline's total market capitalization at the commencement of conditional dealings on the main market of the LSE will be about $1.5 billion.

Softline's GDRs began trading on the LSE under the ticker SFTL. Its listing on the Moscow Exchange is expected to begin trading Nov. 1.

The proceeds of the offering will be used to fund acquisitions as well as future organic and inorganic investments.

Softline said it has about 6,000 employees in over 50 countries.

Credit Suisse Group AG, J.P. Morgan and VTB Capital PLC acted as joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners. Alfa Capital Markets, Citigroup Inc., Gazprombank (Joint-stock Company) and CJSC acted as joint bookrunners.