French pay TV giant Canal+, which is behind “Paddington” producer Studiocanal, has officially split from parent company Vivendi in time for its 40-year anniversary. Making its debut solo on the London stock exchange on Monday, Canal+ enlisted a homegrown executive, Amandine Ferré — who has been at the company for 15 years and was most recently based in China — to “cut the cord” and engineer the IPO.

Canal+ shares opened this morning at 290p and dropped by about 20% after noon local time, giving the banner an estimated valuation of £2.4 billion. Ferré, who is chief financial officer and a member of Canal+’s management board, tells Variety that the fluctuations were anticipated. “We know that in the first few weeks, our share price is going to be a little volatile,” she says. But the exec is forecasting Canal+’s “shares price volatility will calm down in January.”

Ferré previously spearheaded the French TV...