KNDS Wrestles With a Governance Puzzle as Record Orders Pile Up

KNDS reports €4.4B revenue and €33.1B backlog, but its 2026 dual listing in Frankfurt and Paris faces delays due to state ownership negotiations and a potential Czech strategic investor.

The numbers coming out of KNDS are the kind that would make most companies rush their stock market debut. Revenue climbed to €4.4 billion in 2025, a gain of almost 16% year-on-year. The order intake hit €13.5 billion, pushing the backlog to €33.1 billion — more than seven times annual sales. Operating profit reached €661 million, lifting the EBIT margin from 13.2% to 15.0%. Yet the path to a dual listing in Frankfurt and Paris, planned for 2026, is tangled in a web of state interests, family shareholders and a potential third strategic investor from central Europe.

The Leopard 2 and Caesar howitzer maker confirmed in late May that preparations for the IPO are proceeding on schedule, with the backing of its owners and supervisory board. But in Berlin, the response has been more cautious. Government ministries have asked for extra time to negotiate the state’s entry and the allocation of shares — a signal that the political machinery is still catching up with KNDS’s own timetable.

At the heart of the delay lies a complex ownership structure. The founding German families hold 50% of KNDS; the French state owns the other half. Under the current blueprint, Germany intends to take roughly 40% at the IPO, then reduce its stake to around 30% within two to three years. France would scale back its holding in parallel. Crucially, voting rights are to remain split equally between the two governments regardless of the exact capital split — a concession that underscores the strategic nature of the asset.

That equation may become even more complicated. The Czech group CSG, an industrial holding company with ambitions in defence, has confirmed through its chief executive that talks over acquiring a stake in KNDS are ongoing. The Financial Times reported in May that CSG had already made an offer to the German family shareholders. How such an interest fits alongside two state anchors remains an open question that will shape the governance framework for minority investors.

KNDS is not waiting idly for political clarity. The company has already held discussions with automotive firms about leasing production capacity, because its own plants are running flat out. CEO Jean-Paul Alary has publicly stressed the need to expand output, particularly in Germany. The UK order for 72 RCH 155 self-propelled howitzers — worth around £1 billion, with first deliveries due in 2028 — is just one example of a contract that will test KNDS’s ability to translate its order book into deliveries.

For investors eyeing the KNDS stock, the operational strength is only half the story. The other half is whether a company with two state shareholders, a possible third strategic investor and a family bloc can craft a corporate governance structure that protects minority rights. Three milestones will provide the answer: a finalised ownership structure, the publication of listing documents, and a clear statement on whether strategic investors such as CSG will be permitted alongside the states. Until then, the IPO remains a political project wrapped in a commercial success story.