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Member, Beacon International Group, Ltd.
LONDON--HLF Insurance Holdings Ltd. is planning to become a publicly traded company, the brokerage announced Friday in reporting its financial results for the year ended March 31, 2002.
The London-based brokerage hopes to raise between £250 million and £300 million ($365 million and $438 million) through an issue of ordinary shares on the London Stock Exchange, a spokesman said. The proceeds from the offering, which HLF plans to complete before the end of the summer, would be used primarily to pay down the brokerage's debt, the spokesman said.
"We have established a strong platform which I believe will generate significant growth for the future. I believe this growth will be accelerated by a stock exchange listing," David Margrett, chief executive of HLF, said in a statement.
HLF was formed by the 1999 merger of London brokerages Lambert Fenchurch P.L.C. and Heath Group P.L.C. Heath had been publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange until 1997, when it delisted following a management buyout. Lambert Fenchurch delisted following the merger with Heath.
Rate increases helped fuel growth in HLF's revenues in fiscal 2001, the company said. For the year ended March 31, HLF's brokerage revenues increased 12% to £278.9 million ($399.4 million).
Investment income, however, dropped 41% to £9.6 million ($13.7 million), HLF reported, which resulted in total gross revenues of £288.5 million ($413.1 million), up 5% over the previous year.