One of the world’s oldest commodity traders, backed by Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF), is plotting a £300m float on the London Stock Exchange.
Czarnikow, which ships a variety of foodstuffs, has begun meeting with groups of institutional investors with a goal of floating in the next few months, Sky News reported.
The group is part owned by both ABF and Australian private equity giant Macquarie, with each holding a 42.5 per cent stake in the firm.
The remaining 15 per cent of shareholders is Czarnikow’s employee benefits trust.
Czarnikow was founded in 1861 by Julius Caesar Czarnikow and is headquartered in Paternoster House by St. Pauls.
At the beginning of the 20th century, it became the largest paper operator in the world, handling 55 per cent of the world’s output.
While the group might be most known for its paper trade, it also works with grains, nuts and seeds, sweeteners, fruit, dairy, additives, plastic and non-plastic packaging, biomass, ethanol and electricity.
ABF, which owns Primark, Twinings and Ryvita, also owns British Sugar, the sole British producer of sugar from sugar beet.
Sky News reported that investment bank Peel Hunt had been consulted on the float from Czarnikow, with bankers coordinating ‘early look’ meetings with institutional investors to sense demand for an IPO.
The group has 13 offices globally, with it saying it had increased its workforce by almost a quarter in the last year.
ABF, Macquarie and Czarnikow have been contacted for comment.
Peel Hunt declined to comment.