Aim index on the up, says Leeds legal firm

The public markets team at Cobbetts LLP said it is seeing an increase in the number of businesses seeking to raise capital on the London markets.

The firm, which has offices in Leeds and Manchester, advised on seven Aim transactions in the first quarter of 2010, helping clients to raise more than 75m. Cobbetts said 274 companies delisted from Aim in 2009, blaming the cost of maintaining a quotation, depressed company valuations and a lack of investor appetite.

But the pace of departure has slowed since, said the firm, with 44 leaving the market in the first three months of 2010 compared to 73 in the same period last year. More companies joined the junior index this year, with 16 companies floating on Aim in the first quarter, as opposed to five in the same period in 2009.

Daniel O'Gorman, corporate partner in Leeds, said: "While Aim saw a notable downturn in admissions throughout 2009, the outlook for 2010 and beyond is considerably more positive.

"Company valuations are slowly improving, investor appetite for new issues is growing, and chief executives are more optimistic about their ability to raise funds. As 2010 progresses, we expect this optimism to manifest itself in a number of new admissions and funds raised on the market."

Meanwhile, Cobbetts is opening an office in Cairo, Egypt, to take advantage of demand from basic materials companies in the Middle East and North Africa.