world Chess Heads To London Stock Exchange
World Chess has completed its initial public offering (IPO) and been admitted to trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
The London-headquartered chess organisation works to promote the mass market appeal of chess globally through the commercial offering of chess related activities.
This includes the organisation of top-level tournaments, operation of the official online gaming platform of the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and other sport, lifestyle and social activities, and merchandise related to chess.
The company has announced that its entire ordinary share capital will be admitted to the official list and to trading on the LSE’s main market for listed securities.
World Chess has completed a subscription and retail offer of new ordinary shares, raising gross proceeds of £3m which will see the company will have a market capitalisation of approximately £41.7m on admission.
Novum Securities Limited is acting as financial adviser to the company and retail investors will be able to register interest in the IPO by applying through PrimaryBid prior to admission.
Ilya Merenzon, Chief Executive Officer of World Chess, said, “I am pleased to be announcing our intention to float on the London market at a transformational time for chess and for our business. There continues to be an explosion of interest in chess, which has accelerated through recent years and even more during the pandemic. To keep pace with this growth we are scaling up our operations and expanding our range of services internationally.
“We believe chess is the only remaining mass participation sport not yet fully benefitting from the creativity and investment of the commercial sector. As the business world begins to recognise the opportunity to profitably offer chess fans more of what they want, there is an incredible opportunity to continue increasing interest in chess worldwide. Our goal is to build on the foundations of millennia of people playing chess for fun as well as for intellectual challenge, reinvent the game of chess so it fits more easily into modern lifestyles and, above all, ensure chess is accessible to more people.
“Our ecosystem business model supports fans through their lifelong chess experience. We help players, sponsors and partner organisations, and are committed to a sustainable approach to business. We have the advantage of being an established brand with almost a decade of experience hosting high-level events globally. Our online offering benefits from using a newly built technology platform to leverage the established World Chess brand.
“We are hugely passionate about chess and can’t wait to take the next step in developing the sport that looks like a hybrid of e-sports with a Nobel prize awards ceremony.”
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