London Stock Exchange: 2010, IPO Fundraising Up More Than 500%

• Number of IPOs more than quadruples
• Over £10 billion raised in 89 IPOs
• London remains international market of choice for global business
• Total fundraising on AIM exceeds £6 billion

IPO fundraising on the London Stock Exchange rose by more than 500% in 2010, as 89 companies from across the globe raised over £10 billion through Initial Public Offerings ["IPOs"] on the Exchange's markets. The total money raised by IPOs during the year reached £10.1 billion, a 573% increase on 2009 [£1.5 billion], with the number of IPOs joining the Exchange's markets more than quadrupling [2009: 22 IPOs].

Tracey Pierce, Director of Equity Primary Markets at London Stock Exchange Group, said:

"We have seen a rejuvenation in the IPO market during 2010. Whilst last year our markets supported a significant amount of fundraising through further issues, 2010 injected some very positive signs of life into the new issues market, including a number of major wins for London. With high profile listings from India, Russia, Asia and the Middle East, plus many other countries, the London Stock Exchange remains the international market of choice for companies with truly global ambitions.

"We believe that these new floats are just the beginning of a growing, healthy, long term pipeline of issuers, looking to join our markets. As market conditions continue to improve, we are confident many more companies will look to benefit from the unrivalled liquidity and international profile that a listing in London can provide."

2010 EQUITY MARKET HIGHLIGHTS:

• On March 24, four new companies - African Barrick Gold, Metric Property Investments, SuperGroup and CPP Group - joined the Main Market, raising £900 million between them
• On May 7, Essar Energy, one of India's leading private sector power and oil and gas companies, raised £1.3 billion, the largest ever Indian IPO in London
• In July, UK companies raised nearly £2 billion, with Ocado, Vallar, GCP Infrastructure and Better Capital all joining the Main Market
• Betfair, the world's largest international online sports betting provider, joined the Main Market in October, with a total offer size of £234 million
• In November, AZ Electronic Materials became the first non-UK incorporated chemical company to take a Premium Listing on the London Stock Exchange, raising £383 million at admission
• November also saw three Russian companies - Transcontainer, O'Key and Mail.ru - raise a total of over £1.2 billion and Aluminium Bahrain become the 43rd company from the Middle East on the Exchange's markets
• AIM enjoyed another strong year, raising a total of £6.3 billion, a 12 per cent increase on 2009. Over £1.1 billion was raised on the market in November alone, the strongest month for fundraising since October 2009
• The number of AIM IPOs during the year more than tripled, reaching 43, with five companies from India joining the market in just ten weeks from September to November. The total money raised by AIM IPOs increased 58% year on year, reaching £961 million
• Money raised through further issues on AIM reached £5.1 billion, underlining the market's ability to provide capital to companies across their growth cycle
• In December, Doric Nimrod Air One Limited and CATCo Reinsurance Opportunities Fund Limited became respectively the fourth and fifth IPOs this year on the Exchange's Specialist Fund Market, with ten issuers having now joined the market since launch.

Marcus Stuttard, Head of AIM, said:

"Once again in 2010, AIM proved it is the world's leading growth market. It gives companies from across the globe, from a broad range of sectors, access to a unique community of investors and analysts, capable of providing the capital they need to fund their expansion at IPO and beyond. The list of companies joining the market during the year demonstrates AIM's unrivalled diversity.

"Small and mid-cap companies will be central to economic recovery, and dynamic public markets like AIM, where companies can access equity finance on an ongoing basis, will continue to support jobs and drive entrepreneurial activity."

*includes non-IPO new issues
** Figures for 2010 are approximate, based on confirmed totals for all new and further issues up to the end of November, and estimates for IPOs during the period 1 - 20 December and further issues during the period 1 - 17 December.