TP Icap faces shareholder unrest after investors joined an activist fund in calling on the interdealer broker to take action to revive its faltering fortunes.
Bosses at the FTSE 250 company have come under pressure after Phase 2 Partners, a US hedge fund, this week published an open letter to Richard Berliand, the TP Icap chairman, criticising its “disastrous share price decline” and urging him to put the group up for sale.
Other shareholders are understood to share Phase 2’s concerns. A top ten investor, who declined to be named, told The Times they had privately encouraged the broker to consider options for its data division.
The shareholder believes Parameta, the high-margin business, could be sold to unlock value for investors. They suggested a review of the division to TP Icap before Phase 2 staged its intervention. “Most management teams don’t like to sell their best business, which is what this is,” the investor said of Parameta. “But when the shares are where they are and have performed as they have done, I’m not entirely sure they’ve got that choice anymore.”
The shareholder said they would prefer a deal for Parameta than a sale of all of TP Icap.
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TP Icap, which acts as a middleman in trades, is well-known in the City. Nicolas Breteau, its chief executive since 2018, has presided over a slump of about 40 per cent in its share price in the past year. The stock closed last night at 151p, up 1¼p, or 0.87 per cent, valuing the group at around £1.2 billion.
Phase 2 said in its letter that the broker should take “decisive steps immediately to benefit long-suffering shareholders” and explore a sale.
The broker said: “TP Icap maintains an active and engaged dialogue with all its investors, and is focused on delivering value to shareholders.”
