DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA, the renamed money management unit of Deutsche Bank, started trading Friday with an opening share price of €32.55 on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
The share price closed at €33.08, up 1.6% in the first day of trading.
The money management unit said in a news release Friday that "the market capitalization of DWS reached approximately €6.5 billion ($8 billion) in the morning hours of Friday." DWS planned to sell between 20% and 25% of the unit through an initial public offering, which was first announced in 2017. DWS originally set its share-price range between €30 to €36 per share.
One of the known buyers of DWS' shares is Nippon Life Insurance Co., which said earlier this month it is to acquire a 5% stake in the asset management arm of the German bank.
"We are very satisfied with the demand for our shares and we now want to capitalize on that tailwind. Through the IPO we feel well-positioned to build on our strengths and to accelerate our growth to the benefit of our clients, our shareholders and our employees," Nicolas Moreau, CEO of DWS, said in the news release.
Mr. Moreau was not available for additional comment after trading closed.
