Israel-based performance network Matomy has scrapped plans to raise about $100 million in a London Stock Exchange public offering that would have valued the company at around $400 million.
The withdrawal was motivated in part by a “technicality” of London IPOs that requires at least a quarter of shares to be claimed by investors in the European Economic Area, a zone that includes 30 states in the European Union and European Free Trade Association.
Additionally, Matomy’s decision was influenced by what it called “volatility” in ad tech share value, as evidenced by post-IPO performance of Tremor Media, Blinkx, Rocket Fuel and others.
Here’s a statement from the company:
“Despite a well-received bookbuild, in which Matomy obtained sufficient demand from high quality investors to cover the deal size, the Board has decided not to proceed with the IPO at this time.
The requirements of the UK Listing Rules for a Premium Listing are that 25 per cent of shares in issue must be held by investors within the European Economic Area. This requirement could not be met given the international profile of investor demand.
The negative share price performance and volatility in the ad tech sector over recent weeks was an additional factor.
The Board is considering appropriate options.”
As AdExchanger noted in March, Matomy’s business is a three-legged stool consisting of a publisher network, an affiliate channel and a programmatic sales channel supported by a global partnership with AppNexus. Within these buckets, it supports multiple formats including desktop display, mobile and email. It hopes to become the world’s largest company focused on performance-based digital ads.
The company has made four acquisitions since 2011 (Adotomi, MediaWhiz, Adperio and MobAff), and has raised $17 million in venture funding from Viola Private Equity.
