PE-backed LeasePlan prepares for IPO

Francesca Veronesi
05 October 2018

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PE-backed Dutch fleet management business LeasePlan has announced its intention to float on Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Brussels in the coming weeks.

The expected offering consists entirely of existing shares held by the company's current sole shareholder Lincoln Financing Holdings, which is controlled by a consortium of investors.

The offering will be made to retail investors in the Netherlands and Belgium and institutional investors globally. It is expected to take place in the coming weeks, subject to market conditions.

Deutsche Bank, UBS Limited, Goldman Sachs International and ING Bank are acting as joint global coordinators and ABN Amro Bank, BNP Paribas, Citigroup Global Markets and Jefferies International are joint bookrunners for the offering. ABN Amro Bank is also acting as listing and paying agent with respect to the offering.

TDR Capital acquired Dutch LeasePlan alongside a number of co-investors from Volkswagen and investment firm Fleet Investments in 2015. The buyout was valued at €3.7bn, which at the time of the transaction represented the fourth largest PE-backed buyout to ever take place in the Benelux region, according to Unquote Data.

The consortium of backers included London-based GP TDR, Dutch pension funds including PGGM, ATP, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC, Luxembourg-based Luxinva and Goldman Sachs's merchant banking subsidiary, among others. The consortium financed LeasePlan's acquisition with an equity injection representing approximately 50% of the €3.7bn purchase price, with the remainder consisting of debt facilities.

Ardian acquired a minority stake in the business a year later.

Founded in 1963, LeasePlan is a car leasing service. Based in Amsterdam, the business operates 1.8 million vehicles in 30 countries. It operates under two brands: LeasePlan for new cars and CarNext.com for used cars.

The group manages the entire vehicle lifecycle, from purchasing, insurance and maintenance to car resale. LeasePlan reported sales of €425m in 2016, just under the previous year's €442m. In 2015 the business employed 7,275 people.