By Arasu Kannagi Basil
(Reuters) -Billionaire sports financier Todd Boehly-backed Accelerant was valued at $6.4 billion as its shares jumped 36% in their New York debut on Thursday, underscoring a strong investor appetite for insurance listings.
The shares of the specialty insurance marketplace opened at $28.50 apiece, above the $21 offer price. In 2023, the company was valued at $2.4 billion.
The strong debut adds to the growing momentum for insurance IPOs that has emerged as a key theme in the new listings market since Liberation Day, with a string of companies successfully pulling off first-time share sales.
Accelerant and some of its shareholders sold roughly 34.5 million shares in an upsized IPO to raise $724 million. They had earlier planned on selling roughly 29 million shares between $18 and $20 apiece.
“The tariff-induced volatility has triggered a classic flight to quality, forcing investors to prioritize predictable cash flows over speculative growth,” said Lukas Muehlbauer, IPOX research associate.
“Insurance companies are the primary beneficiaries of this shift in risk appetite, as their defensive business models are more suited to withstanding economic uncertainty.”
A number of insurance companies such as Aspen Insurance, American Integrity Insurance, Ategrity Specialty Insurance and Slide Insurance have completed IPOs in New York since May, and all of them are trading above the offer price, while some IPOs were upsized.
“It seems to be a combination of an industry that is more immune to the current market risks, and is innovating in the right ways at the right time,” said Laura Katherine Mann, partner at law firm White & Case.
“The rebound for insurance might continue for a time, but in a volatile market, it is the first movers that will benefit from the current investor appetite for these companies.”
Besides Boehly’s Eldridge, Accelerant is backed by investment firms Altamont Capital Partners and Barings.
(Reporting by Arasu Kannagi Basil in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel and Shinjini Ganguli)
