Elliott Management lining up Rothschild for Waterstones listing - report

7th Jan 2026 15:56

(Sharecast News) - The owner of Waterstones is reportedly close to hiring bankers to work on a multibillion-pound listing of the bookseller.

According to Sky News, Elliott Management is preparing to appoint Rothschild to act as an independent adviser on its flotation options, with a public market debut likely to take place as soon as the second quarter of this year.

Sources told Sky that Rothschild's likely engagement was the clearest sign so far that London is well-placed to triumph over New York in the battle to stage the listing of one of the world's leading book retailers.

As well as Waterstones, Elliott also owns Barnes & Noble, which trades from hundreds of stores in the US. In Britain, the company trades from about 315 stores and employs roughly 4,000 people.