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Wall Street bank hired by The Trainline for £400 million float

The Trainline, Britain’s biggest online rail booking operation have hired Wall Street bankers Morgan Stanley in preparation for their £400 million debut on the stock market.

Sky News reported that Exponent, a private equity firm, has appointed Morgan Stanley to oversee a potential listing. Exponent has held a controlling stake in Trainline since 2006.

Companies including AO World, a digital channel for white goods sales, and Just Eat, an online takeaway service, attracted strong demand ahead of their listings but both have traded down since going public.

The Trainline made around £9 million in profit in the year to March 2013, despite having to pay £2 million in fees to advisers who led an unsuccessful sale process.

The business, which handles ticket sales for the majority of UK rail operating companies, added two million customers in the year to March and has seen its digital app downloaded more than six million times since its launch.

In an attempt to drive the shift to mobile usage of its site, Trainline reshuffled its top management earlier this month, recruiting Clare Gilmartin, a former eBay manager, as its new chief executive.

Murray Hennessy became deputy chairman following Ms Gilmartin’s appointment.

Established in 1999, Trainline was bought by Exponent for about £160 million from a consortium which included Virgin, Stagecoach and National Express.

As well as its own website, Trainline’s runs digital sales operations for the majority of train operating companies and has expanded overseas, serving major companies and travel agents as clients.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Clare Burnett .