Leading travel management company the Hogg Robinson Group (HRG) is to seek a listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
The long expected move was announced this week. HRG said it was aiming to raise £190m through an initial public offering (IPO) of new and existing shares.
Its current majority shareholder is Permira Funds (formerly Schroder Ventures) which led a management buy out in 2000 when HRG left the LSE.
A statement by HRG said the company, which describes itself as an "international support services group focused on the corporate travel market," had "transformed" over the past six years, moving from a commission-based revenue to a long term recurring revenue model through management contracts.
It said more than 60% of its income was from long term contracts of between three to five years.
It operated in 96 countries through a network of owned or contractual partnerships and was one of only four such companies in the world.
HRG said the proceeds from the IPO would be used to "refinance part of its current indebtedness, creating an appropriate capital structure to pursue its business plan and growth strategy."
It will also make a one-off payment of approximately £28.5m to reduce the deficit of its pension fund.
In its statement, HRG said in the year ended March 31, 2006 it generated revenue of £297.2m (2005: £270.6m), EBITDA of £44.2m (2005: £37m) and an operating profit before exceptional items of £36.2m (2005: £29.9m).
Its management team is lead by chairman John Coombe, formerly chief financial officer of GlaxoSmithKline and a director of HSBC and GUS and ceo David Radcliffe.
Mr Coombe joined as chairman earlier this year with the understood aim of guiding HRG to an LSE listing.
Mr Radcliffe said the company was "excited" by the prospect of returning to the LSE.
"Since taking the business private in 2000, we have continued to grow Hogg Robinson Group as one of the leading players in global managed corporate travel and to develop our expense management capability through a strategy of organic and acquisition-led growth.
"The fact that we now derive the majority of our revenues from long-term contracts with our managed clients reflects the successful transformation of the business into a focused support services business with a truly global network.
"A listing will raise the profile of Hogg Robinson Group's business and support our strategic flexibility as we continue to seek to exploit opportunities for further growth."
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