Sagicor Investments Jamaica Limited will seek to raise up to $4 billion in an initial public offering of shares in Sagicor Select Funds Limited, a pool of funds that track financial stocks on the Jamaica Stock Exchange.

The IPO which opens July 3 and closes July 17 will offer 2.5 billion units to the public with an option to upsize the offer with an additional 1.5 billion units. Each unit is priced at $1.

The company will issue two classes of shares, aimed at ensuring Sagicor Investments remain as the manager of the fund as only it will hold Class A shares. IPO subscribers will be issued with Class B shares.

“The company was been structured as a passive listed equity fund whereby separate classes of shares of the company … are being offered in the Invitation as ‘the Financial Select Fund’,” said the prospectus.

The seven-member board of Sagicor Select Funds is chaired by accountant and businessman Colin Steele.

Currently, the fund has $1.1 billion is invested 11 of the 23 stocks that make up the JSE Financial Index. The IPO proceeds will finance acquisition of more of the financial stocks, the aim being to “match the securities that constitute the Index as closely as possible,” stated the prospectus.

Investors will be able to track the value of the Index, the net asset value (NAV) of the Financial Select Fund and the market value of the Financial Select Fund on a daily basis. These statistics will be published on the JSE’s website and the Sagicor Investments Jamaica Limited.

The JSE Financial Index was launched by the exchange on March 1. It comprises financial companies, insurance and microfinancing companies trading on the main and junior markets. The index closed at 118 points on Thursday, up 18 points or 18 per cent since its debut.

Sagicor currently leads the unit trust market, with Sigma branded products that also invest in individual stocks on the equities market. However, Sagicor Select would provide a different choice by allowing investors to specialise in a specific sector without the attendant concentration risk.

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