The owner of Loveholidays, one of Britain’s biggest online travel agents (OTAs), has added to the syndicate of banks preparing to help it launch a spring stock market listing in London.
Sky News has learnt that Investec is working alongside Barclays and JP Morgan on the initial public offering, which could be unveiled as early as March, according to City sources.
A successful stock market debut for a prominent brand such as Loveholidays would deliver a boost to the London stock market, which has struggled to win major listings in recent years.
One insider said that while a March launch date was being prepared for, it could yet be delayed depending on market conditions.
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Loveholidays has been backed by Livingbridge since 2018, and has seen its financial performance improve markedly since the Covid pandemic threw the travel industry into chaos.
The company specialises in trips to the Greek islands, mainland Spain and the Canary Islands, and boasts that its inventory of 35,000 hotels and 99% of all flights result in 500 billion possible holiday packages.
It reportedly saw pre-tax profits rise by a fifth to £67.6m on sales of £284m in the year to October 2024.
Along with OnTheBeach and TUI, Loveholidays ranks among the UK’s biggest OTAs and has been a big winner from the post-pandemic resurgence in demand from holidaymakers.
Founded in 2012, the company organised the holidays of more than 5 million Britons in 2024.
It also operates in Ireland, Austria, Germany and the Netherlands.
Livingbridge, the private equity firm which owns Loveholidays, is also working with Rothschild to help coordinate plans for the initial public offering (IPO).
Both Loveholidays and Livingbridge declined to comment.