Siemens plans to list Healthineers business on Frankfurt Stock Exchange
November 29, 2017
by Thomas Dworetzky, Contributing Reporter
Siemens now plans to list its health care unit on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange's Regulated Market.
"Frankfurt is one of the world's largest trading centers for securities, and its importance will continue to increase due to Brexit. As a highly liquid trading venue, Frankfurt is attractive for investors from around the world. The public listing will give Siemens Healthineers entrepreneurial flexibility and access to the capital market. The goal is to grow sustainably and profitably while actively shaping the paradigm shift in the health care industry," chairman of the Siemens Healthineers supervisory board and the member of Siemens' managing board Michael Sen said in a statement.
The move, slated for the first half of 2018, was given the green light at today's supervisory board meeting.
Sen called the public listing “the next logical step and the foundation for expanding our strong position as a leading global supplier of health care technology.
A Siemens Healthineers AG will be set up for the IPO.
"Our preparations for the public listing are completely on schedule,” noted Siemens Chief Financial Officer Ralf P. Thomas, adding that both the Strategy 2025 concept and the management team are already in place.
Global coordinators for the deal will be Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs International and J.P. Morgan, with BNP PARIBAS, BofA Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and UBS Investment Bank also on board as syndicate banks.
Reports suggest that Siemens intends to sell about 25 percent as part of the listing – worth about $47.5 billion – which would make the IPO the largest in Germany since the 1996 Deutsche Telekom IPO of $13 billion.
It is also the biggest strategic play for CEO Joe Kaeser's efforts to reorganize the Munich-based industrial giant. Kaeser's Vision 2020 plan, begun in 2014, is aiming to narrow Siemens to a core and spin off other divisions in what he has dubbed a “fleet of ships” model, according the the Financial Times.
Frankfort beat out New York, and the United States, for the listing, which the company did not directly address. Sources did tell the Times, that some deciding factors included the more international nature of the Frankfort exchange, which is favored by Asian investors, and the appeal the move would have for German unions.
The U.S. appeared at first to be the favorite. However, uncertainty grew in recent months about the IPO's final destination.
Siemens had already announced in February the possibility that it would list the Healthineers in the U.S. and not Europe. “We don't have a final view on this yet, but we are looking at it very closely," Kaeser.
But there was a possible change of heart in early March, when Kaeser told Swiss newspaper Finanz and Wirtschaft that “under President Donald Trump” he “will have to think twice” about where to list the health care unit, mentioning Frankfurt and Hong Kong as possibilities.
"Frankfurt is one of the world's largest trading centers for securities, and its importance will continue to increase due to Brexit. As a highly liquid trading venue, Frankfurt is attractive for investors from around the world. The public listing will give Siemens Healthineers entrepreneurial flexibility and access to the capital market. The goal is to grow sustainably and profitably while actively shaping the paradigm shift in the health care industry," chairman of the Siemens Healthineers supervisory board and the member of Siemens' managing board Michael Sen said in a statement.
The move, slated for the first half of 2018, was given the green light at today's supervisory board meeting.
Sen called the public listing “the next logical step and the foundation for expanding our strong position as a leading global supplier of health care technology.
A Siemens Healthineers AG will be set up for the IPO.
"Our preparations for the public listing are completely on schedule,” noted Siemens Chief Financial Officer Ralf P. Thomas, adding that both the Strategy 2025 concept and the management team are already in place.
Global coordinators for the deal will be Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs International and J.P. Morgan, with BNP PARIBAS, BofA Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and UBS Investment Bank also on board as syndicate banks.
Reports suggest that Siemens intends to sell about 25 percent as part of the listing – worth about $47.5 billion – which would make the IPO the largest in Germany since the 1996 Deutsche Telekom IPO of $13 billion.
It is also the biggest strategic play for CEO Joe Kaeser's efforts to reorganize the Munich-based industrial giant. Kaeser's Vision 2020 plan, begun in 2014, is aiming to narrow Siemens to a core and spin off other divisions in what he has dubbed a “fleet of ships” model, according the the Financial Times.
Frankfort beat out New York, and the United States, for the listing, which the company did not directly address. Sources did tell the Times, that some deciding factors included the more international nature of the Frankfort exchange, which is favored by Asian investors, and the appeal the move would have for German unions.
The U.S. appeared at first to be the favorite. However, uncertainty grew in recent months about the IPO's final destination.
Siemens had already announced in February the possibility that it would list the Healthineers in the U.S. and not Europe. “We don't have a final view on this yet, but we are looking at it very closely," Kaeser.
But there was a possible change of heart in early March, when Kaeser told Swiss newspaper Finanz and Wirtschaft that “under President Donald Trump” he “will have to think twice” about where to list the health care unit, mentioning Frankfurt and Hong Kong as possibilities.