South: Gateley advises on post-Brexit IPOs

National law firm Gateley plc, which has an office in Reading, has advised Cantor Fitzgerald Europe on the successful £26.6 million fundraising and admission to AIM, sub-market of the London Stock Exchange, of Autins Group plc.The float sees Autins Group become the second West Midlands company to float on AIM since the EU referendum in June 2016, joining Franchise Brands plc which floated in early August and was also advised by Gateley plc.

Corporate partner Paul Cliff and senior associate Tom Rush led the team advising on both deals. Cliff said: “It is particularly pleasing to see capital markets activity continuing in the wake of the Brexit vote.”

Autins Group, the Rugby-based makers of advanced insulation to manage noise and heat emissions for car makers, counts Aston Martin, Bentley and Jaguar Land Rover among its clients. The Group made a pre-tax profit of £1m on sales of £21.4m in the year to September 2015, and is targeting a £25m turnover in the current financial year.

The IPOs highlight the national strength of Gateley’s corporate team, which was ranked first for deal volume in the Experian Corpfin M&A Advisor League Table for the first half of 2016. The team had been ranked top for the first quarter in 2016 and managed to maintain its position for the half-year due to its involvement in 64 deals.

Gateley plc, which last year became the first law firm in the UK to go public, revealed its first full-year results in July 2016. Turnover at the national law firm increased more than 10% to £67.1m.

The law firm works through a network of seven English offices based in Reading, Birmingham, Leeds, Leicester, London, Manchester and Nottingham.