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Russia Metalloinvest picks IPO organizers: report
MOSCOW (Reuters) - Metalloinvest, the Russian iron ore and steel company controlled by billionaire Alisher Usmanov, has picked organizers for an initial public offering planned for autumn, Kommersant business daily reported on Monday.
The newspaper quoted sources as saying that Metalloinvest had appointed Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse and Deutsche global as coordinators of the offering and Russian banks VTB and Renaissance Capital as joint bookrunners.
One unnamed investment banker told Kommersant that the offering is planned for October-November while another banker said the company will float up to 10 percent of its shares on both the London Stock Exchange and Russian bourses.
Analysts value Metalloinvest at about $25 billion. Investment bankers said the company will not issue new shares for the offering and will float a stake already owned by one of the shareholders.
Usmanov, who owns 50 percent of Metalloinvest, last month agreed an asset swap with Norilsk Nickel (GMKN.MM) shareholder Vladimir Potanin that could result in Potanin acquiring a 25 percent stake in Metalloinvest.
Norilsk, a $53 billion company based on metals reserves in the Russian Arctic, is at the centre of negotiations to create a potential world mining giant in combination with aluminum firm United Company RUSAL and billionaire Alisher Usmanov.
Metalloinvest's IPO may also form a debut for the investment banking arm of Russia's second largest bank, VTB (VTBR.MM), which launched its own investment banking division three month ago.
(Reporting by Gleb Bryanski; Editing by Quentin Bryar)
