TOP Ships announced a planned spin-off of Rubico Inc., which will operate two Suezmax tanker vessels, to shareholders.
TOP Ships Inc. announced the planned spin-off of its subsidiary Rubico Inc., which will operate as an independent publicly-traded company on the Nasdaq Capital Market.
The spin-off involves the transfer of two Suezmax tanker vessels, the M/T Eco Malibu and M/T Eco West Coast, to Rubico. TOP Ships plans to distribute 100% of Rubico’s common shares to its securityholders on June 16, 2025, with an expected ratio of one Rubico share for every two TOP Ships shares held.
TOP Ships common shares will begin trading without an entitlement to Rubico shares starting on the same date. The spin-off is also conditioned on Rubico raising $1.5 million through a private placement. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, and there is no guarantee that it will be completed as planned.
It is reported that Rubico submitted a potential spin-off application in June 2023, but withdrew the application two months later. In its annual report for April 2025, TOP Ships reiterated its intention: “We are evaluating alternative options for spinning off certain assets to Rubico.”
TOP Ships manages a fleet of eight tankers, including five Suezmax tankers, one MR2 product tanker, and two very large crude carriers (VLCCs), with a total carrying capacity of 1.43 million tons, and holds a 50% stake in two MR2 product tankers. All vessels are operated under long-term charter agreements, with charter expiration dates ranging from the end of 2025 to 2037.
It is worth noting that TOP Ships is promoting diversified development and will enter the luxury yacht market in 2024.
In July 2024, TOP Ships acquired 100% equity in a company owning a 499 GT luxury yacht for US$20 million through the signing of a share purchase agreement. The yacht is scheduled for delivery in April 2025. Concurrently, the company acquired 100% equity in a shipowner company for US$27 million. The shipowner company will own a newly built mega yacht with a GT of 1,150 tons, scheduled for delivery in 2027.
Both yacht transactions involved entities affiliated with Evangelos Pistiolis, CEO of TOP Ships.
In recent years, it has become increasingly common for Greek listed shipping companies to spin off new entities from their core businesses. Well-known shipowners such as Konstantinos Konstantakopoulos, Harry Vafias, Semiramis Paliou, Aristides Pittas, Stamatis Tsantanis, and Petros Panagiotidis have all adopted similar strategies.