Virgin Mobile USA, the mobile carrier part-owned by Sir Richard Branson, raised $412.5 million (£203 million) in an initial public offering that was priced at the bottom end of the forecast range.

Shares in the New Jersey-based carrier, a joint venture between Sir Richard’s Virgin Group and Sprint, the US mobile operator, rose as high as $16.63 on their debut yesterday morning, up 10.8 per cent on their float price, after a listing which valued the group at about $1.3 billion including debt.

A total of 27.5 million shares were sold for $15 each, compared with a forecast range of $15 to $17 a share.

Virgin Group, which opted to stay in the company, saw its 46 per cent stake diluted to 35.7 per cent in the deal, in which about 43 per cent of the company was sold.

Sprint, which provides the network for the service, reduced its holding in the company but retains a 17.2 per cent stake.

Virgin Mobile USA will use the deal proceeds to pay down debt.

Since its launch in 2002, the carrier has established itself as one of the country’s fastest-growing mobile operations, winning nearly five million customers.

Virgin Mobile USA pioneered the “virtual” operator model, under which a company avoids the expense of building its own network by using an existing player’s network.

The company, whose services are marketed under the Virgin Mobile brand, focuses on the youth market, although about half its customers are 35 or older.

It controls roughly 15 per cent of the pay-as-you-go mobile phone market.

Its operating revenue in the first six months of 2007 rose 23 per cent to $666.9 million, compared with the same period a year ago, while its net income doubled to $26.5 million.

Virgin Mobile UK floated in 2004. Sir Richard endured a rocky ride with a forced cut of the flotation price at the last minute.

However, the UK operator proved a hit — the model was followed by others including Tesco Mobile — and is now part of Virgin Media, the communications group formed through a merger with the cable group NTL.

The float marks the latest shake-up in the Virgin empire, which is in flux with deals including the potential sale of Virgin Media to private equity.

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