Rothschild and Lazard in race to advise Romania’s most valuable state company on IPO

International investment banks Rothschild and Lazard have expressed interest in providing consultancy to Romanian hydropower company Hidroelectrica in the process of preparing its initial public offering (IPO) and listing its shares on the stock exchange, Ziarul Financiar daily informed.

A third consultant, STJ, also lined up for the job, the daily informed quoting “sources in the capital market.”

Another consultant will be selected later to manage the actual IPO and listing process.

Hidroelectrica is the most valuable state-owned company in Romania, evaluated at around EUR 3.4 billion. The Romanian state owns 80% of the company, with the remaining 20% held by investment fund Fondul Proprietatea. The company produces some 30% of the country’s electricity.

Rothschild has had several mandates in Romania in recent years, one of which was advising the shareholders of local restaurant operator Sphera Group (Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC) in the process of selling shares and listing on the stock market.

Rothschild has an office in Bucharest, and one of the partners, Arielle De Rothschild, was a member of the board of directors of electricity distribution group Electrica, after the group carried out its EUR 440 mln IPO in 2014.

Lazard has a stronger position on the US market than in Europe, but the new CEO - Peter Orszag, former economic adviser to US president Barack Obama and US budget minister, told the Financial Times in November 2019 that he wants to win more mandates in Europe.

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