Leaseplan cancels planned float as stock markets wobble
Car leasing group Leaseplan today announced it was cancelling its planned initial public offering (IPO) just a week after confirming its float plans.
The private equity-backed company, which has a market capitalisation of more than €6bn (£5.2bn), blamed market conditions for its decision.
Leaseplan said last week that it was planning to float on the Euronext exchange in Amsterdam and Brussels, calling the move a “logical next step”.
Read more: Aston Martin and Funding Circle shares continue to fall after IPOs
Today the company said that it had “decided not to proceed with the planned initial public offering of Leaseplan at this time due to market conditions.”
The decision comes after London floats this month by carmaker Aston Martin and peer-to-peer lender Funding Circle disappointed with shares in both trading well below their offer price.
This week litigation funder Vannin Capital cancelled its planned stock market flotation which it blamed on market “volatility”.
The FTSE 100 index was down 130 points this morning at 7,014 points following a turbulent night on Wall Street.
Read more: Litigation funder Vannin Capital pulls London IPO
Joshua Mahony, a market analyst at IG Global said that market troubles had been sparked by a rise in US treasury yields.
"Markets have been in freefall, with sharp declines throughout the US yesterday providing a backdrop for huge losses throughout Asian and now European markets. At the heart of this issue is the rise in US 10-year treasury yields, with the huge US debt load looking increasingly vulnerable given the ramp up in servicing costs expected if yields continue to rise,” he said.