Whoosh staged Russia’s only initial public offering (IPO) of the year on Wednesday, though the e-scooter firm raised less than originally hoped in a market deprived of Western investors since Moscow sent troops into Ukraine in February.
The company said it raised 2.1 billion roubles ($33.2 million), less than half of its initial goal of $80 million.
Shares were placed at 185 roubles each, the lower end of the price range, giving Whoosh a market capitalisation of 20.6 billion roubles ($326 million), the firm said in a statement.
Whoosh shares will start trading later on Wednesday under the WUSH ticker and the free float will exceed 10%.
The company said existing shareholders had provided shares worth 200 million roubles for possible stabilisation in the secondary market, taking the IPO’s total volume to 2.3 billion roubles.
While breathing life into a moribund market, Whoosh’s debut also reflects the small volumes and dependency on retail investors which are likely to characterise listings in a Russian stock market devoid of Western capital.
Whoosh said leading Russian investment funds accounted for more than half of the total IPO volume.
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