Laybuy shares rally by 52.5 per cent on ASX debut

Laybuy managing director Gary Rohloff. Photo / Supplied

Shares in Kiwi buy now pay later company Laybuy soared 52.5 per cent on debut on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX).

By mid afternoon on the company's shares were trading at AU$2.15, up from their initial public offer (IPO) price of AU$1.41.

The offer raised AU$80 million through a AU$40 million primary issuance and a AU$40 million sell-down by existing shareholders.

About 57 million shares were sold at AU$1.41 each.

At today's market price Laybuy, with its 174.5m shares on issue, has a market capitalisation of AU$375.2m.

Laybuy is just one of several New Zealand tech companies said to be headed for the ASX after proving popular with Aussie investors.

For the financial year to March 31, Laybuy's net loss widened to $16.2 million, versus $3.6 million in financial 2019, driven by impairments.

Managing director Gary Rohloff said since being launched in New Zealand in 2017, Laybuy had undergone rapid growth and is now one of the leading BNPL (buy now, pay later) providers in New Zealand, with a growing presence in Australia and Britain.

"The capital raised through this IPO provides Laybuy with the funding needed to increase our presence in the United Kingdom, continue driving a strong marketing strategy and grow our customer base and merchant partnerships," Rohloff said in a statement.

"The issue would provide the company with a very solid platform to cement our place as the leading weekly-payment BNPL provider in that market," he said.

The United Kingdom's retail market is twice the size of the Australian market.

"It is also a market where there is a comparatively high proportion of retail shopping done online and where BNPL is still in its infancy, providing enormous growth opportunities for Laybuy," Rohloff said.