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British brokerage Cazenove & Co plans to attract staff for its operations in Asia by offering share options as it prepares to list on the London Stock Exchange.

Cazenove's existing partnership status means it is unable to offer shares to employees as an incentive to join the company.

'We are people-constrained, we need more people - we have got more opportunities than we have people,' said partner Nigel Rowe, based in London.

'By involving all our employees in the business we will significantly help our ability to recruit,' he said.

Cazenove will make available 20 per cent of its equity for non-partner employees and new recruits ahead of its initial public offering.

The brokerage sees Asia and continental Europe as the two strongest growth opportunities during the next few years.

Within Asia, Cazenove will focus initially on the larger markets in the north of the region.

It plans to open an office in Beijing by the middle of next year.

'In Hong Kong . . . we will be looking to add more analysts.

'We will also be looking to beef up the corporate finance function here as well,' said May Tan, managing director of the brokerage's regional arm Cazenove Asia.

In Asia, outside Japan, Cazenove employs about 25 research analysts, seven people in corporate finance and 10 in institutional sales, according to Ms Tan. The partnership has a valuation of approximately GBP1.5 billion (HK$16.56 billion) on its present earnings.

However, Mr Rowe pointed out the valuation could change before the listing - which is expected by the end of 2002 - as earnings were expected to rise.

Funds from the listing will be used to help finance Cazenove's expansion in the region and Europe.

'The money is going to be used to put more resources on the ground,' Mr Rowe said.

As a partnership the company does not have to disclose its accounts and this contributes to the firm's low public profile.

'To date because of the partnership structure we have been extremely low profile,' Ms Tan said.

There are 80 partners who hold the entire equity of the company.

In the first quarter next year Cazenove will sell 10 per cent of its equity to institutional investors ahead of its IPO.

The brokerage decided to raise its public profile by becoming an incorporated company with limited liability, which enables it to bring on board new investors, rather than merge with a larger investment bank.

'We decided that incorporation preserves the benefits of independence - it allows us to continue unchanged the offering to clients of the kind of relationship they would like,' Mr Rowe said.

Cazenove has participated in 35 IPOs in Hong Kong in the past five years including the Mass Transit Railway Corp and Sinopec.



Cazanove move will see staff gain from its status change