Boutique investment bank Moelis & Co has been chosen as an adviser by Saudi Aramco on what is expected to be the world's biggest initial public share offering, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The IPO, which Saudi officials expect to value the oil producer at a minimum of $2 trillion, is the centrepiece of a Saudi Arabian government plan to transform the economy by attracting foreign investment and diversifying away from oil.
Moelis will be the internal independent adviser, a key position in which it will provide counsel on selection of underwriters, how much to pay them and where the shares should be listed, said the sources, who spoke on Tuesday and Wednesday. The persons spoke only on condition of anonymity because the process is confidential.
Moelis' appointment is a big win for the New York bank, dwarfing previous IPO advisory mandates that include luggage maker Samsonite International SA on its $1.3 billion IPO in 2011 and last year's flotation of Extraction Oil & Gas Inc, which valued the company at $3.23 billion.
Moelis, founded by veteran US dealmaker Ken Moelis in 2007, itself went public less than three years ago.
Moelis shares rose as much as 7 percent on Wednesday and were still up 2.6 percent at $35.90 in late morning.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.