Investors pile in to Amsterdam-listed defence giant on its market debut, reflecting fervent appetite for defence assets amid sustained military spending growth.
Czech defence and ammunition maker Czechoslovak Group (CSG) raised €3.8 billion in its market debut on Euronext Amsterdam on 23 January, marking the largest ever IPO for a pure-play defence company.
Shares were priced at €25 and rose as much as 32 per cent in their first trading session, briefly valuing the company at more than €30 billion. By mid February, the stock had fallen to around €29, having traded at around €31 for the past fortnight.
The offering comprised €750 million of newly issued shares and approximately €2.55 billion of existing stock sold by majority shareholder CSG FIN a.s. To meet strong demand, banks also exercised a roughly €496 million over-allotment option, allowing additional shares to be sold, and bringing total proceeds to €3.8 billion.
In total, around 15.2 per cent of the company’s share capital changed hands.
Cornerstone investors including Artisan Partners, BlackRock-managed funds and Qatar Investment Authority’s Al-Rayyan Holding committed roughly €900 million to the transaction.
The primary proceeds will support expansion plans, including potential acquisitions and capacity growth.
Since the IPO, CSG has bolstered its governance framework, expanding its board with independent directors and appointing a dedicated head of investor relations to support its transition to a publicly traded company.
CSG, controlled by 33‑year‑old owner Michal Strnad, is one of Europe’s fastest‑growing defence firms, producing medium and large‑calibre ammunition, heavy equipment and related systems. It claims to be the second largest medium and large calibre ammunition producer in Europe and the largest small-calibre ammunition producer globally by sales, having acquired US-based Kinetic in 2024.
The company’s financials also appear healthy. In the first nine months of 2025, CSG reported revenues of €4.5 billion and an order backlog of €14 billion, bringing its total pipeline of opportunities to €32 billion.
The strong market debut comes amid rising European defence spending and a broader rally in defence stocks, as investors rotate into strategically linked sectors. Since 2022, sustained increases in military budgets, favourable policies and renewed focus on industrial resilience have driven a re-rating of European defence equities, a sector once largely avoided by institutional capital.
CSG’s valuation places it alongside established industrial groups, showing how defence manufacturers are increasingly viewed as long-term strategic assets. The deal also arrives as other European defence companies prepare listings, suggesting capital markets are becoming a more significant funding channel for the continent’s rearmament and industrial expansion.