European ARM Firm Lindorff Hires Banks to Run IPO

The investment firms that own Norway-based debt collection firm Lindorff have hired prominent banks to run the company’s listing on a stock exchange, according to a Reuters report which cited anonymous sources.

The report said Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Swedish banks Carnegie and SEB were appointed to lead a planned initial public offering of Lindorff, which is valued at $2.29 billion. Lindorff is currently jointly controlled by private equity firm Altor and investment firm Investor AB.

A public offering for Lindorff has been rumored since mid-2013. The latest step seems to be a definitive nod that the company will go public.

One of the Reuters sources said there was an 80 percent chance the listing would be in Stockholm, where the company’s owners are based and rival Intrum Justitia is listed, and a smaller chance the company would be floated in Oslo, Lindorff’s headquarters location and also home to competitor Aktiv Kapital.

Lindorff has grown rapidly since Altor invested in the firm in 2003. The company said that net revenues in 2011 totaled $580 million. Lindorff has been buying debt collection firms focused on specific European countries, with notable recent deals involving the Netherlands, Spain, and Denmark.

Lindorff has a presence in 11 countries and counts around 3,000 global employees.