Allegro raises $2.3bn in record Warsaw listing

E-commerce site Allegro has raised 9.2bn zloty (£1.7bn) on the Warsaw stock exchange in Poland's biggest float.

Strong demand for tech stocks in Europe helped the eBay and Amazon rival sell 213m shares at 43 zloty each.

The company raised 1bn zloty by selling 23.3m new shares with the remainder coming from its private equity owners Cinven, Permira and Mid Europa Partners. The stock is set to start trading on Oct 12.

The listing is expected to improve the profile of Polish tech stocks as well as boost Warsaw’s stock exchange, which has long been dominated by state-controlled companies and has seen turnover decline in recent years.

The float values Allegro at $11.2bn (£8.5bn), which means it will overtake video-game maker CD Projekt as Warsaw’s biggest company.

The company is betting on the continued expansion of online shopping in Poland, a market made up of 38m people and widely regarded as one of Europe’s most-resilient economies.

Allegro is counting on lower fees, a loyalty program and the use local merchants to battle competition from the likes of Amazon.

Francoi Nuyts, Allegro's chief executive, said it was “another important milestone” for the company.

“We have spent time with  a range of potential investors, and the feedback we have received has been extremely positive,” he said.

“Over 20 years of  constant growth and innovation, we have grown from a local startup to European e-commerce champion. We have come this far because we have stayed focused on creating a great experience on our platform, continuously enhancing the Allegro experience to make it the best possible place for consumers and merchants to shop and to  do business.”

Allegro was founded in 1999 and has about 12.3m active users and 117,000 retailers.