Freehills has acted on the largest initial public offering (IPO) of the year to date, the A$1.2bn Aston Resources float.

“We hope that the fact Aston Resources has successfully listed on the Australian Stock Exchange will help encourage further IPO activity in the market,” said Freehills partner and co-head of equity capital markets Philippa Stone.

Earlier this year Freehills worked on the IPO for Singapore-based Miclyn Express Offshore, which listed with a market cap of A$516m. Last year the firm worked on the largest IPO in Australia to date- the Myer float.  

Stone said there had been limited activity in the IPO area over the past 12 months, but was hopeful of more activity in the second half of 2010. “Companies have been holding back, because they think they might get a better financial outcome later in improved markets, or from private sale transactions. To some extent, available investment funds have also been absorbed by secondary raisings by existing listed companies,” she said.

Aston Resources is the owner of the Maules Creek coal development project, one of the last major undeveloped and significant multi-seam coal deposits in NSW. “The investors in Aston Resources were very sophisticated coal industry players as well as other institutional and sophisticated investors. This affected a number of aspects of the IPO, and also enabled a short offer period of 11 days from lodgement to listing,” said Stone.   

The Freehills team for was led by Sydney-based Stone and Tony Sparks, and Brisbane-based corporate partner Matthew Fitzgerald.

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