Burger King’s UK division is planning to join the London market with a £600mln IPO.
The British franchise, owned by private equity firm Bridgepoint Group PLC (LSE:BPT), is talking to advisers Investec and Numis ahead of a potential flotation next year.
It’s likely it will soon appoint one of them, The Times reported.
Burger King UK holds Britain’s operations for Restaurant Brands International (TSX:QSR), the New York-listed owner of the fast-food chain.
Bridgepoint acquired it in 2017 alongside Caspian UK Group, one of the country’s largest franchisees with 74 Burger King sites.
It now operates 530 restaurants in the UK, 400 of which are owned by their franchisees.
An IPO comes amid a bout of aggressive expansion by a number of players in the restaurant sector and would follow the recent London debut of Mexican food chain Tortilla Mexican Grill.
Chains such as Greggs, Pizza Express, Wagamama owner Restaurant Group PLC (LSE:RTN), and Franco Manca and The Real Greek owner Fulham Shore PLC (AIM:FUL) are all planning to further expand their estates by exploiting the demise of their fallen rivals.
Large companies have benefitted from the end of lockdown, as they had deep enough pockets or in many cases raised extra cash, so they could enjoy the eventual pent-up demand from consumers and reduced competition.
Extra cash made during the summer reopening rush has further supported acquisition pipelines which are expected to fuel growth.