Axcel fully exits Pandora

Prior to the sale, the GP's stake in Pandora had stood at just under 4%. The full exit was made through an accelerated bookbuilding offer led by Goldman Sachs and placed with institutional investors.

Pandora shares opened trading on the Copenhagen Stock Exchange at DKK 519 apiece this morning.

Axcel's exit comes soon after Pandora's management and board – including former chairman Allan Leighton – had been found guilty of withholding information ahead of releasing a severe profit warning in 2011, which caused the share price to drop substantially.

However, Pandora has experienced explosive growth since then and is one of the most successful exits in European private equity history. Its current market cap is DKK 67bn and the company's share price is more than double the DKK 210 per share it listed at in 2010.

Previous funding
The GP acquired Pandora from its two founders in 2008, taking a 60% stake in the company.

In 2010, Pandora listed on the Nasdaq OMX Copenhagen exchange in an IPO that valued the company at DKK 27.33bn.

Company
Founded in Copenhagen in 1992, Pandora designs, produces and markets jewellery. The company employs 11,000 people, mainly at its Thai manufacturing plant, and operates 1,300 shops.

Pandora's revenue was around DKK 9bn in 2013.

People
Christian Frigast is the managing partner at Axcel and is on Pandora's board alongside Axcel partner Nikolaj Vejlsgaard.

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