Italy's Nexi approves 600-700mn euro cash call as part of IPO

MILAN: Italian banking services provider Nexi has approved a capital increase of between 600 million and 700 million euros ($795 million) as part of its plans to list, the company said on Friday.

Nexi's advisers are working to list the company in April, targeting an overall valuation of 8 billion euros, which would make it Europe's second-biggest initial public offering since 2017, sources said on Thursday.

Proceeds from the cash call will be used to pay down Nexi debt, a source close to the matter told Reuters on Friday.

Nexi, owned by private equity firms Bain Capital, Advent and Clessidra, said its pro-forma adjusted core earnings (EBITDA) in 2018 were 424 million euros.

Over the course of the next two years, initiatives already executed will add a further 95 million euros to EBITDA, the company said.

Nexi said it expected core earnings to rise on average between 13 and 16 percent per year in the period from this year to 2023, while revenues will grow between 5 and 7 percent.

The digital payment specialist last month approved the launch of its IPO process in Milan.