AJ Bell float rings up £140m for founder

The eponymous founder of retail stockbroker and fund manager AJ Bell lined up a £140 million paper fortune on Thursday as the company pushed the button on a £500 million float.

AJ Bell, which was set up in 1995 by Andy Bell, now has £46.1 billion in assets under management and almost 200,000 customers. Alongside Bell’s windfall, the management and staff own a further 25%.

The initial public offering sees Bell cut his stake in the firm from 28% to 25% and a partial exit for biggest institutional investor Invesco, which bought in over a decade ago and reduces its holding from 44% to 25%.

No new money is being raised, although the move is being backed by City heavy-hitter Michael Spencer, who sold his NEX electronic trading business this year and is set to buy a 5% stake.

AJ Bell’s float comes after a turbulent period for markets, although the founder said this had not set back IPO plans, which first emerged this year.

The float was driven by a need to allow Invesco an exit and to raise the stockbroker’s profile, Bell added. “None of the management really wanted to sell a stake in the IPO although we do see the benefits of being a public company,” he said.