Government names 16 Royal Mail investors

1 May 2014 02:37 PM

Government names 16 Royal Mail investors who gave government the confidence to launch the Initial Public Offering. 

Business Secretary Vince Cable yesterday (30 April 2014) released the names of the 16 ‘pilot fishing investors’ who gave government the confidence to launch the Royal Mail Initial Public Offering (IPO) and who were later allocated shares.

He said:

I told the BIS Select Committee yesterday [29 April 2014] I wanted to be as helpful and transparent as possible. In that spirit I had already provided the names to the National Audit Office and yesterday I provided the list in confidence to the chairs of the BIS Select Committee and the Public Accounts Committee. I had been advised that the investors expected confidentiality around their share acquisitions but there has been strong interest in who the investors are and speculation around the names, some of it inaccurate. I have decided the public has an interest in an accurate list being available.

The list of these investors (in alphabetical order) is as follows:

• Abu Dhabi Investment Authority
• BlackRock
• Capital Research
• Fidelity Worldwide
• GIC
• Henderson
• JP Morgan
• Kuwait Investment Office
• Lansdowne Partners
• Lazard Asset Management
• Och Ziff
• Schroders
• Soros
• Standard Life
• Third Point
• Threadneedle

During late 2012 and 2013, 65 global investment funds were approached to gauge their interest in buying Royal Mail shares at flotation: a number decided not to take the matter further. Twenty one major investors showed the strongest support for the transaction as well as a strong understanding of the company and were approached during the pilot fishing in early September 2013. Sixteen of these investors gave the government the confidence needed to launch the offer and were later allocated shares.

Notes for editors

The government’s long-term plan is to build a strong, more competitive economy and a fairer society.
Industrial Strategy gives impetus to the plan for growth by providing businesses, investors and the public with clarity about the long-term direction in which the government wants the economy to travel.
The first achievements and future priorities of the industrial strategy have been published and can be found herehttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/industrial-strategy-early-succ esses-and-future-priorities.