GAME has returned to London's main stock exchange just two years after the video gaming retailer collapsed into administration.The company, which has 327 stores in the UK and 233 in Spain, began trading with a market value of £340 million after shares were priced at 200p.
A 35 per cent stake in the company - known as Game Digital - has been sold in the flotation, allowing shareholders to secure £101 million and the company to book proceeds of £20 million.
Hedge fund Elliott Advisors, which owned more than 90 per cent of Game after backing a rescue deal led by private equity firm OpCapita, is retaining a significant stake in the business.
Game's turnaround comes after administrators and its new owners shut around half of the outlets to scale back a costly store base which, coupled with heavy competition from online rivals, led to its demise.
It is now debt-free after reportedly owing creditors around £180 million when it filed for administration in March 2012.
Under the flotation, which is short of initial expectations for a valuation of £400 million, some 20,000 of Game's most loyal customers in the UK will be handed virtual loyalty shares which track the value of the company's stock.
It has also established a share ownership plan for staff.
Chief executive Martyn Gibbs said the business had been able to attract high quality investors.
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