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Hyderabad-based animation and game art company DQ Entertainment has raised almost £26.8 million ($56 million) by listing on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange (LSE). DQE is the first Indian animation company to list on the AIM. The stock exchange has seen listing from a host of Indian movie production and distribution houses like The Indian Film Company and Eros Entertainment, besides real estate companies like Unitech and the Rahejas.
The company placed 19,727,961 new ordinary shares at £1.36 per share, and DQE will have a market capitalisation of £48.9 million ($97 million) on admission. The shares have been placed by Evolution Securities Ltd and E*TRADE Securities Ltd. The company had earlier raised $10 million via debt. According to Business Standard, the existing investors in the company IL&FS, Hyderabad-based private equity fund i-Labs (now called Peepul Capital), TDA Capital Partners, India Value Fund and IFC, Washington, will be partially exiting through this IPO.
Besides, DQE plans to use the proceeds for infrastructure expansion of its production facilities in India; sales and distribution network world-wide, direct and co-investment in intellectual property creation, immediate European acquisitions and joint ventures, a news report says, quoting a company release.
DQE has production facilities in Hyderabad, contracted production facility in Manila and sales set-up in Paris, Los Angeles and Tokyo. The company is present in all platforms of CGI (3D)/ 2D Traditional, 2D Digital/ VFX including TV series, feature films, direct to home videos (DTH).
See Indiantelevision.com for more on the company's plans.