Pushpay Holdings, the mobile payments app developer valued at $1.2 billion by market capitalisation, is in a trading halt as it prepares a bookbuild to let executive director Eliot Crowther exit the firm he co-founded, and has dropped plans to list in the US this year.
The 24.8 million shares will be sold in a fully underwritten bookbuild ahead of Crowther's resignation, first as a director on June 21 then as an employee on July 31, Pushpay said in a statement. The stock last traded at $4.37 on the NZX, down 1.1 per cent on the day, and has soared 168 per cent over the past 12 months.
Crowther is leaving for personal reasons to focus on his family.
"The board and management of Pushpay would like to thank Eliot for his invaluable contribution to Pushpay, including his service as a co-founder, executive director and sales executive," chief executive Chris Heaslip said. "Pushpay wishes Eliot the best for his future endeavours. The board is actively searching for an additional US-based director and is considering suitably qualified candidates of diverse backgrounds and experience."
The bookbuild was being held yesterday and today, and the trading halt was expected to be lifted before the market opens tomorrow. The company narrowed its loss to $23.3m in the year ended March 31, from $25.3m a year earlier.
