betfair shares up 17%

Offer price £13....sale of 16,227,462 excisiting shares approx 15.2% of total

Opening price this morning £15 [Symbol BET]

Now trading £15.60......that's now a £20% increase

one market maker until wednesday. don't know much more than that

What was the premium charge?

Could you remind me who won the most medals at the Commonwealth Games nairda?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/alistair-osborne/8082240/Betfair-gets-off-to-a-flyer-though-the-race-is-only-half-run.html

Bookies are not renowned for their generosity. So punters will be doubly pleased with David Yu, the Betfair chief executive, for leaving 19pc on the table on day one. It makes you wonder, though, why he bothered to hire a stable of investment banks to get his IPO out of the starting stalls. John McCririck, Channel 4's man in the ring, could have done just as well – though his catchphrase "toerags behave yourself" might have irked the institutions.

Alongside the lawyers, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Barclays Capital and Numis will trouser £15.7m in fees. That's for hawking Betfair to potential owners at £11 to £14 a share – before pricing up at £13. The shares closed last night at £15.50. Nice work, if you can get it.



Indeed, the price looked so light that even Paul Roy couldn't resist. His private equity firm New Smith has put itself down for up to £50m-worth of shares. Just to clarify, that's the same Roy who doubles up as chairman of the British Horseracing Authority and enjoys running battles with Betfair over its contribution to the sport.

Indeed, no sooner had it announced its float than Roy rushed out a press release, claiming it had "disrupted" racing's finances with "severe consequences".

True, Betfair is not a typical float. With £151m of cash on its balance sheet, it didn't need to raise any money and its shareholders are retaining most of their holdings – but for the 15.2pc sold at the float.

Unlike this year's other IPOs, such as the Ocado's, Betfair also looks more classic nag than selling plater. But its biggest tests are ahead – and the handicapper is taking no chances. On some forecasts, it is trading on a 2011 price earnings ratio of 60 times. Admittedly it falls sharply but William Hill is on 10 times.

If Betfair can mirror its betting success with its LMAX financial exchange, such a rating may not prove racy. But that's a big ask. Bookies always win in the end. But who knows if that also goes for non-traditional ones.

Well down now