Boohoo secures £200m through share placing
Boohoo confirmed it has successfully raised almost £200m in funding following the placing of 58 million shares.
The online retailer raised £197.7m through the successful placing of 58,140,591 shares at 340p per share, in a placing led by investment banking boutique Zeus Capital.
Following the fundraise, Boohoo will have an “even stronger” balance sheet to help its growth in global markets, with a cash reserve of around £500m.
Jefferies acted as a joint global coordinator and bookrunner alongside Zeus Capital, which involved a “limited number” of institutional and other investors. The new shares are expected to be admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM market on 20 May.
The online fashion retailer first announced its intention to secure the funds yesterday (14 May). The group said it would use net proceeds to “take advantage of numerous opportunities that are likely to emerge in the global fashion industry over the coming months”.
The new funds will also be used to build upon the previous acquisitions of Karen Millen and Coast, as well as NastyGal and MissPap, all of which have “demonstrated its ability to develop and grow brands successfully”.
In addition, it will also use the funds to “review a number of possible M&A opportunities”.
The group had previously noted that trading had been “mixed” since mid-March in light of the ongoing pandemic, with performance improving in April. In its latest update, it confirmed that May trading has remained “robust”.
In light of the ongoing uncertainty of Covid-19, the retailer still “remains cautious” regarding its financial outlook. For this reason, it will not yet provide guidance for the financial year ending 28 February 2021.
