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Franco-German tank maker KNDS said it planned to list its shares in Paris and Frankfurt, starting the process for one of the largest flotations in Europe in recent years that will test investor appetite for defence stocks.
The company said on Wednesday that its current shareholders, the French state and a group of German families, would float 20 per cent of the company on the two exchanges.
The listing is likely to value the maker of the Leopard and Leclerc tanks at between €12bn and €15bn, according to two people familiar with the situation. The final valuation will depend on investor feedback over the coming weeks.
The float will pave the way for a complex restructuring of the shareholdings of one of Europe’s most important defence players at a time when the region is on an aggressive rearmament drive.
Jean-Paul Alary, KNDS chief executive, said the move was a “natural next step” for the group.
Europe, he added, “is entering a new era of defence and security” with armed forces “modernising at speed and rebuilding critical land defence capabilities”. KNDS was “uniquely positioned to support this shift”.
Alary declined to comment on the exact timing of the listing, saying only it was expected “in the coming weeks”.
The company had decided not to offer shares to retail investors because of the “additional complexity” involved and the “very positive interest” from institutional investors, he added. Alary declined to comment on the possible valuation of the group.
But the IPO comes after a loss of momentum in defence stocks. Shares in Europe’s defence groups have fallen as investors question whether promised higher military spending will materialise and whether the industry can deliver on the higher production needed.
The announcement comes after Berlin on Monday agreed to acquire a 40 per cent stake in the company from the German families who own half of KNDS after protracted discussions between the two sides. The price agreed by the German state includes a control premium over the eventual IPO price, a government insider said.
Under the IPO, the French state will reduce its 50 per cent holding to about 40 per cent to match Germany’s.
The two governments are expected to agree to a 10-year lock-up period, during which a sale of KNDS shares that would result in their respective interests falling below 30 per cent would require the approval of the other party.
Under a revised governance structure, the board of directors will be enlarged to 12 members, comprising the CEO, five independent non-executives and three representatives nominated by each of the two governments.
Alary said the company had found the “right balance” between “giving the management of KNDS the ability to run all the operation and the business of the company and at the same time for the two nations to preserve some very key national security interests”.
The Amsterdam-headquartered company set out an ambitious outlook on Wednesday, saying it was well placed to take advantage of higher military spending as the largest pan-European land systems group. The company, which generated revenues of €4.4bn in 2025, said it was targeting revenue growth of 30 per cent in 2026 and an operating margin of about 12 per cent.
Additional reporting by Anne-Sylvaine Chassany in Berlin
