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European law firm Fieldfisher has advised award-winning US video game publisher Devolver Digital, Inc. on its admission to trading to London's AIM market, raising approximately US$261 million and valuing the company at a US$950 million market cap.
The US video game publisher's admission to trading in London is one of the largest ever floats on AIM.
Devolver is an award-winning video games publisher in the indie games space with a balanced portfolio of third-party and own-IP.
Devolver has an emphasis on premium games and has published more than 90 titles, with more than 30 titles in the pipeline scheduled for release over the next two years and beyond. Through recent acquisitions, Devolver now has its own-IP franchises, in-house studios developing first-party IP and a complementary publishing brand.
This transaction marks the start of Devolver’s next stage of growth, providing US$50 million of gross proceeds to the company to accelerate its growth strategy and expansion plans. The transaction also included a secondary cash placing of US$211 million for management and existing investors, including strategic investor NetEase, Inc, who retain an investment in the company.
The ground-breaking transaction means Devolver will be the second-largest company (by market capitalisation) ever admitted to trading on AIM and the largest ever US-based operating company to be admitted to the London Stock Exchange across all markets. The placing has seen Devolver receive a significant strategic investment from a key industry player, as well as support from US institutional investors through the 144a placing.
Devolver was advised by Fieldfisher's band 1-ranked equity capital markets team.
Commenting on Devolver's successful admission to AIM, Ed Westhead, equity capital markets partner at Fieldfisher and lead IPO counsel, said:
"Devolver's IPO is one of the standout deals on AIM this year and in the history of the junior market, which continues to provide an excellent, globally recognised platform for growing companies to attract capital and build their profile.
"It has been a pleasure to work on this significant deal and my thanks to Devolver and all the advisory group for their efforts in achieving such a successful outcome. We wish Devolver the best of luck on its future as London-quoted company."
Brian Chadwick, Devolver’s General Counsel, said:
"We chose to work with Fieldfisher on this transformational step for Devolver because of its status as the number one law firm for AIM IPOs and the depth of experience across its peerless equity capital markets team.
"As a leading US games company coming to AIM, we needed lawyers with expert knowledge of every aspect of the listing process. In Fieldfisher, we had an incredibly knowledgeable team that guided us through every aspect of the transaction, including translating and explaining unfamiliar concepts and rules.
"Most of all, they really understood our culture, the commercial drivers in the games industry and what we are trying to achieve. We thought the client service was spectacular – they are real experts in capital markets, hard-working and a really good bunch of people to deal with.
"We greatly value Fieldfisher's support and we really look forward to working with them post-IPO on as a UK-quoted company."