John Sword has returned to the stock market firing line, having successfully pulled in £57 million of new money, at 148p, for engineered steel products play Acertec. Sword is chief executive of the company, which was formed in 1999 to take Hall Engineering private.

John Sword has returned to the stock market firing line, having successfully pulled in £57 million of new money, at 148p, for engineered steel products play Acertec.
 
Sword is chief executive of the company, which was formed in 1999 to take Hall Engineering private with the backing of Candover, JP Morgan Chase and Bank of Scotland. The debt element has since been refinanced and the company now banks with Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and Allied Irish.
 
Flotation will boost Acertec’s profile, lend Sword an attractive acquisitions currency, and allow Candover to realise part of its investment. Hawkpoint was the adviser and Collins Stewart, broker to the float.