March 12 (Bloomberg) -- KKR & Co., the private-equity firm run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, filed to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange, as it seeks a wider investor base in the U.S.

KKR Guernsey, the firm’s existing publicly traded unit in Amsterdam, will be dissolved, the company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing today. KKR Guernsey shareholders, who will receive one U.S. share for each they already own, will have 30 percent of the New York company, and KKR executives the rest.

A U.S. listing would clear the way for KKR to issue additional stock, tapping public shareholders to raise money, and enable firm insiders to eventually cash out their stakes if they so choose. The shares now trading in Amsterdam carry restrictions that require U.S. purchasers to meet certain criteria before buying the stock.

“From an investor’s perspective, you get a step up in liquidity,” said Michael Kim, an analyst at Sandler O’Neill & Partners LP in New York, who estimates that KKR may list on the NYSE by the end of June. “From KKR’s perspective, this gives them a greater ability to retain talent and to make acquisitions.”

KKR merged with its publicly traded European fund on Oct. 1 to gain a listing in Europe, after dropping plans for an initial public offering amid the credit crisis. The pace of leveraged buyouts and the valuations of the companies KKR owns have since picked up as debt and equity markets thawed.

Long-Term Benefit

“Our decision to pursue a U.S. listing is based on our conclusion that the U.S. listing will benefit KKR Guernsey unitholders over the long term,” the 34-year-old firm said in today’s filing. “The U.S. listing offers the opportunity to invest in our business, attract and incentivize world-class people, and enhance the diversity, scale and capital of our business.”

Blackstone Group LP, the world’s largest private-equity company, went public in New York in 2007, just before the financial crisis. On average 14 times more Blackstone shares trade each day in New York than KKR units in Amsterdam, according to data compiled by Bloomberg over the past 12 months.

Kravis and Roberts haven’t sold shares during the New York listing process and haven’t indicated any plans to do so. Blackstone Group LP founders Stephen Schwarzman and Peter G. Peterson netted $2.56 billion between them from their firm’s IPO.

KKR Guernsey rose 53 cents, or 4.8 percent, to $11.65 in Amsterdam trading today, valuing the firm at about $8 billion. KKR filed today to register about $2.2 billion of shares in the U.S.

Quarterly Profit

Kristi Huller, a spokeswoman for KKR, declined to comment.

KKR Guernsey reported a fourth-quarter profit last month as it reaped gains from some investments and made new deals. Economic net income was $515.3 million for the three months ended Dec. 31, KKR said, without giving a year-earlier figure.

KKR announced two buyouts valued at more than $1 billion each in the five months through March. The firm agreed to buy Pets At Home in January from Bridgepoint Capital Ltd. in a deal valuing the British pet food and product retailer at $1.55 billion. In November, it agreed to buy the TASC government- consulting business from Northrop Grumman Corp. with private- equity firm General Atlantic LLC for $1.65 billion.

To contact the reporters on this story: Cristina Alesci in New York at  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Emily Thornton in New York at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ; Zijing Wu in London at  This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it