KNDS: German-French tank manufacturer postpones IPO

KNDS: German-French tank manufacturer postpones IPO July 2, 2026Franco-German arms manufacturer KNDS has announced that it is postponing a planned stock market flotation which had been set to enable the German government to take a 40% stake in the company. In a statement, KNDS put the postponement down to the current "volatility of the European defense sector" and said it was waiting for "more favorable market conditions." KNDS, which produces German Leopard-2 and French Leclerc battle tanks, among other weapons systems, is currently owned 50-50 by the French state and the German Wegmann Group. The initial public offering (IPO) in Paris and Frankfurt was set to see the French government reduce its shareholding to 40% and the German government take over 40% of the Wegmann stake for an estimated €7.2 billion ($8.25 billion), according to Der Spiegel magazine. The remaining 20% was to be floated publicly. A precise date for the IPO hadn't officially been set, but German Defense Ministry documents seen by the AFP news agency had suggested early July. But the whole process has now been postponed. "KNDS and its shareholders will continue to carefully monitor the conditions on the capital markets," read a statement from the company, adding that it intends to "relaunch the IPO as soon as market conditions allow." KNDS: German government remains interested in stake The German government said it respected the company's decision to postpone the flotation and insisted that it remained committed to the project. "We remain interested in leading the company towards a successful future together with our French partners," a Defense Ministry spokeswoman told AFP in Berlin on Thursday, adding that the government would "continue to monitor and evaluate" the situation. Formed in 2015 through the merger of German family-owned firm Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and French state-owned weapons maker Nexter, KNDS is Europe's biggest tank manufacturer. The company employs around 11,000 people and reported revenue of €4.4 billion ($5 billion) in 2025. It is headquartered in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands, with its German operations based in Munich. The KNDS flotation was expected to be one of the largest in the European defense sector in recent years. However, defense stocks, which surged in the wake of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine just over four years ago, have recently shown significant volatility. For instance, while the Czech defense group CSG got off to a strong start with its IPO in January, its shares have since lost more than half their value. German drone maker secures billion-dollar funding boost KNDS may consider current market conditions unfavorable, but that's not an evaluation shared by German drone manufacturer Quantum Systems. The company said on Thursday that it has raised $1.2 billion (€1.05 billion) in fresh funding. The Munich-based start-up said the funding came from international investors, valuing the company at about $8 billion (€6.99 billion), around eight times higher than a year ago. "In decades gone by, the battlefield was dominated by tanks, submarines, battleships and fighter jets," Quantum co-CEO Sven Ruck told the Reuters news agency, but he said the Russian invasion of Ukraine has demonstrated the increasing importance of AI-controlled drones. According to Quantum, the company's backers include US investment management firm Blackstone and European aerospace giant Airbus. "This shows that German defense tech companies are highly attractive for global investors," German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche said. As for speculation about a potential Quantum IPO, co-CEO Florian Seibel remained guarded. "We had a mandate from the supervisory board to assess our readiness for an initial public offering," he said. "We might conduct another funding round. We might go public. Or perhaps we will simply continue to grow profitably." Seibel also dismissed recent reports of a planned merger between Quantum and Stark Defence — a startup he also co-founded — as inaccurate, but didn't categorically rule it, saying: "If it makes sense, we'll do it. If not, we won't." Edited by: Sean Sinico