Bookrunner
Investment Banking glossary · Restructuring (RX), DCM, & ECM
Definition
Lead underwriter (also called bookrunning manager) that drives the IPO/equity offering: structures the deal, runs valuation, drafts the registration statement, manages the roadshow, prices the offering, and allocates shares to investors. Bookrunners sit at the top of the syndicate hierarchy (global coordinators / lead bookrunners rightarrow co-bookrunners rightarrow co-managers) and earn the largest share of the gross spread.
Bookrunner in plain English
When a company sells shares to the public for the first time (an IPO), one bank runs the whole show — that's the bookrunner. It's like the lead wedding planner: it prices the deal, writes the required legal paperwork, takes management on a "roadshow" to pitch investors, and decides who gets how many shares. Several banks often team up on a big deal, but the bookrunner sits at the top of that pecking order and, for doing the heavy lifting, keeps the biggest slice of the fees (the "gross spread," the cut banks earn for selling the shares).
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