Spencer trims Icap stake to 19 per cent

Michael Spencer, the founder and chief executive of Icap, the City inter-dealer broker, has reduced his stake in the business to 19 per cent from about 21 per cent, according to a Stock Exchange announcement posted after the close last night.

IPGL, a private investment vehicle majority-owned by Mr Spencer and his family, sold 12.7 million shares at 390p apiece on Tuesday, a discount to last night’s closing price of 404p, as it seeks to reduce it debts, which stood at around £350m a year ago. This transaction takes the company’s net debt to under £200m.

In a separate deal, Mr Spencer increased his personal holding by picking up 5.6 million shares granted under an Icap bonus options scheme for a total of £8. He then sold 2.3 million shares, again at 390p apiece, to pay the tax incurred on the transaction.

The two deals leave Mr Spencer with a personal interest in about 5.5 million Icap shares. Through IPGL, which remains a substantial shareholder in the company, he, his wife and family trust have an interest in another 118 million shares.

Earlier this year, it emerged that IPGL, which before this week’s transaction owned more 130 million Icap shares, had pledged 123 million shares against a HSBC loan. IPGL had further clarified that the only other such charge involved some 7 million Icap shares, which were pledged to Barclays, also for a loan. Of his personal holding, Mr Spencer had pledged less than 1 million shares against unrelated personal loan.