Aspen Insurance made a triumphant return to the public markets on Thursday, May 8, 2025, with its shares surging 10.8% on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) debut. The Bermudian specialty insurer’s shares opened at $33.25 apiece, above the $30 offer price, giving the company a valuation of $3.05 billion.
The successful initial public offering (IPO) saw parent company Apollo Global raise $397.5 million by selling 13.25 million shares – 20.5% more than initially offered. This development comes as a welcome boost to the IPO market, which has been subdued due to tariff-driven volatility and uncertainty surrounding U.S. trade policy.
Industry experts view Aspen’s listing as a significant milestone, marking the largest U.S. insurance flotation since Corebridge Financial’s $1.68 billion IPO in 2022. The company’s return to the public markets is seen as a positive indicator for the IPO market’s recovery, particularly for companies perceived as being relatively insulated from broader macroeconomic swings.
“Insurance companies remain relatively insulated from broader macro swings,” said Trevor Saliba, CEO of NMS Capital Group. “Insurance is a long game. The returns can be meaningful, but they require patience.”
Aspen’s CEO, Mark Cloutier, echoed this sentiment, stating that the company is not immediately impacted by tariffs and is more of a “second-order impact company.” Aspen previously traded on the NYSE from 2003 until 2019, when Apollo acquired it for $2.6 billion. The company had been eyeing a market return for some time, having filed its paperwork in 2023.
Under Apollo’s stewardship, Aspen returned to profitability by reducing catastrophe exposure and exiting certain insurance and reinsurance offerings. The company’s successful IPO is expected to provide a boost to the IPO market, with other companies preparing to follow suit once market conditions stabilize.
“We will need to see more macroeconomic and market stability before we see a real rebound in IPO activity,” said Edward Best, partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher. “Stable inflation and lower interest rates would also be a big boost.”
