If a recent report is to be believed, Codemasters may be hitting the London Stock Exchange and becoming a public company. The team behind the DiRT, Formula 1 and Micro Machines franchises currently operates privately.
The speculation comes from a report via Sky News. It appears preparations are well underway for the racing genre veteran, picking up on plans initially ditched in 2007. Codies’ parent company Reliance Big Entertainment Limited is said to be lining up a potential IPO (Initial Public Offering) for the 2018 market.
Without getting lost in the jargon-filled world of the stock exchange, there are various benefits to an organization going public. The most obvious positive for Codemasters would be the potential to raise capital, which could then be invested back into the team. Outside of monetary gain, public operating companies benefit from increased awareness and word of mouth.
Codemasters already plays a large part in the racing genre; becoming a public company could push that even further. It’s a big step for the developer, but estimates from Sky News do hint that it could be a successful venture. A source has speculated that Codies might be worth £100 million right now, though it may be making a loss at this moment in time.
Even considering that, now would be a good time for the team to make a move. A busy year of releases will soon be followed by a brand new IP led by the remains of Evolution Studios. OnRush is aiming to put the arcade racer back in the gaming spotlight and it certainly has potential to do so.
Codemasters hasn’t commented on the Sky News report at time of writing but if speculation is correct, we may hear news sooner rather than later. Stick with GTPlanet for the latest news on this subject.
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