MusicMagpie plans to float on stock market with £208m value

MUSICMAGPIE HAS confirmed plans to float on the stock market in a deal valuing the business at around £208m.

The Stockport-based “recommerce” site, which specialises in re-selling used technology such as smart phones and games consoles, has said it will list on the London Stock Exchange’s junior AIM index.

It said it expects to raise £15m for the business through the sale of new shares as part of the listing, while existing shareholders are also expected to secure £95m through a share sale.

The company, which was founded in 2007, said it plans to use the funds to help expand its burgeoning smartphone rental business.

MusicMagpie revealed that it posted revenues of £153.4m for the year to November, with earnings of £13.9m.

The listing plans come after a raft of e-commerce floats in London in the past year, with wellreceived IPOs for the likes of The Hut Group, Moonpig and InTheStyle.

Steve Oliver, chief executive officer and co-founder of MusicMagpie, said that the business has had an “excellent” reception from potential investors ahead of the listing.

“We are in a really strong position and saw real positivity in the capital markets, so thought this would be a great opportunity to list,” he said.

“Environmental concerns have really risen to the front of the minds of both customers and investors.”

He added that “people have really got behind our premise, of reducing waste and buying tech in a responsible way”.

Mr Oliver said that the company is also targeting strong growth in the United States, where it operates under Decluttr brand, on the back of the float.

Last month, the customer review website Trustpilot made a strong start to life on the London stock market, as shares jumped soon after its £1.08bn initial public offering.

Trustpilot has had more than 120 million customer reviews left on the site since it was formed in 2007.

While raising cash for its backers, the IPO also raised some £47m for the company itself to invest in its algorithms, as it aims to make it as easy as possible for consumers to share their opinions.

The group is also working to ensure that reviews are trustworthy.