EO has entered a strategic alliance with Omiris Networks to provide retail brokers with access to new equity issues within secondary markets. The UK-based online share distribution platform has further announced that it will act as an occasional IPO channel for Enskilda Securities.
The EO platform allows investment banks and issuers to distribute new issue products to retail distributors and their customers. Omiris Networks provides a platform and service that can route equity order trading flows relating to these new issues back to the issuing investment banks.
The agreement will enable EO and Omiris Networks to enhance their offerings to both investment banks and retail brokers. EO has distribution partnerships with a number of traditional and online brokers aggregating more than 1.5 million brokerage customers across Europe. These include Charles Schwab Europe and Barclays Stockbrokers and most recently IMIWeb UK, Fineco, Italy's largest online broker, and HQ.se, a leading Swedish online broker.
Omiris Networks' chief executive officer Charles Giessen comments: "Accessing new share issues has been difficult for retail brokers over the years and we are pleased to partner with EO to provide a powerful solution to this problem."
In a separate announcment, EO has formed a 'product partnership' with Nordic investment bank Enskilda Securities, under which Enskilda may make appropriate new issues available to retail investors via EO’s distribution partnerships with retail brokers.
As part of the agreement, Enskilda has the option to acquire shares in EO plc and may earn further options for further shares based on certain performance criteria.
Per Anders Ovin, chief executive of Enskilda Securities says: "Retail investors are starting to play an increasingly important role in primary equity offerings, especially in Europe. EO offers Enskilda the possibility to use a simple and cost effective method of reaching significant retail demand across Europe for international equity offerings, giving Enskilda an additional competitive advantage in the primary equity markets."