NEW YORK – Oxford Nanopore Technologies said on Tuesday that it is preparing for an initial public offering later this year on the London Stock Exchange.
According to IP Group, which holds a 15 percent stake in UK-based Oxford Nanopore, the firm currently expects to go public on the London Stock Exchange in the second half of 2021, but the timing will depend on market conditions and "other matters not fully within its control."
IP Group said its stake in Oxford Nanopore is currently valued at £340.3 million ($467 million), putting the total company value at £2.27 billion ($3.11 billion).
In 2019, the most recent year for which financial results are available, Oxford Nanopore reported £52.1 million in revenues, driven by sales of sequencing devices and flow cells, and an after-tax loss of £72.2 million. That year, the company invested heavily in its commercial and operational growth and opened a new manufacturing facility, and its headcount grew to nearly 470 employees.
Oxford Nanopore has raised £613 million to date, starting with two rounds of seed funding from IP Group in 2005. Last year, the company raised a total of £162.8 million in three tranches from global investors. These included £29.3 million recorded in January, a £48.4 million round in May, and an £84.4 million round in October. Investors included International Holdings Company (IHC) in the United Arab Emirates and UK pension fund RPMI Railpen.
An announcement about the IPO plans posted on the nanopore sequencing firm's website was unavailable to viewers in the US and other jurisdictions, and Oxford Nanopore declined to provide a copy of its announcement or additional comment.