(Bloomberg) -- Brazilian K-12 school chain Eleva Educação SA, which counts Brazil’s richest man as an investor, is planning an initial public offering, according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The Rio de Janeiro-based company is weighing a listing in Brazil or the U.S. and has asked investment banks to pitch for a role in the offering, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The transaction would raise about 1.5 billion reais ($272 million), according to one of the people.
Billionaire Jorge Paulo Lemann, a founding partner of 3G Capital, owns a stake in Eleva through another firm. Eleva’s investors also include U.S. private equity firm Warburg Pincus LLC, which acquired a minority stake in 2017.
The transaction would take place later this year, the people said. The discussions are ongoing and the company’s plans could still change, they said.
A representative for Eleva didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Founded in 2013, Eleva owns about 130 schools with 80,000 students spread across 11 Brazilian states, according to its website. The company also has a proprietary learning system used by more than 100,000 students in partner schools.
Brazilian companies raised 25.5 billion reais in IPOs over the past year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The list includes Vasta Platform Ltd, which sells learning systems to K-12 private schools, and priced its initial public offering above the proposed target range, raising about $353 million in a Nasdaq listing in July.
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