Bigben Group forms new entity ahead of planned IPO

The Bigben Group has consolidated under a new entity, Nacon, and that entity has proposed an IPO to fund its plans for growth.

Previously, Nacon was the Bigben Group's gaming accessories brand, while Bigben Interactive served as a publisher in the AA games market.

Today, the Bigben Group announced a new entity, Nacon, which will consolidate all of the group's gaming assets and launch an initial public offering on the Euronext stock exchange in Paris.

In terms of games publishing, Nacon will specialise in AA games, which it defines as products with budgets between €1 million and €20 million, with projected sales of between 200,000 and 3 million units.

"This niche market, which we consider to enjoy a less competitive environment, is experiencing strong growth and is bringing together an increased community of gamers each year," said Alain Falc, CEO and chairman of Nacon, in a statement.

The new entity's IPO bid is in its early stages, with the prospectus awaiting approval from the French regulatory body Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), and Nacon stating the need for " favourable market conditions" before going ahead.

However, it described its IPO plans as a key part of its strategy to be an industry leader in the AA category -- an ambition we discussed with Bigben Interactive in an interview in May last year.

The formation of Nacon has also resulted in restructuring across the different parts of the group.

Alain Falc has moved from CEO of Bigben Interactive to become CEO of the new entity, with Fabrice Lemesre taking his old role. In addition, MIchel Bassot has been named the new COO of Bigben Interactive.

Nacon has a total of 430 employees, 300 of which are working in game development across eight different studios. In the financial year ending March 31, 2020, Nacon expects to earn between €127 million and €133 million, and projects as much as €200 million annual revenue by March 2023.