The head of the London Stock Exchange said yesterday there was “strong cause for optimism” in the City as companies worth billions of pounds consider listing in the UK.
Julia Hoggett said there was “no sense of panic” after a recent exodus led to agonizing soul-searching over London’s future as a global financial centre.
Instead, hopes are rising that after a prolonged winter for the London market, spring is finally here, with a series of IPOs from fashion giant Shein to retailer Boots that could help it spring back to life .
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt met executives yesterday as part of efforts to revive the City’s fortunes.
An optimistic Hoggett told the BBC: ‘We have all the fundamentals here in London. I see strong reason for optimism.’
Confident: LSE boss Julia Hoggett (pictured) said there was “no sense of panic” after a recent exodus of businesses that has led to agonizing soul-searching over London’s future.
He has been a prominent figure in the fight to revive London’s status after hard blows, such as the decision of Cambridge chip giant Arm Holdings to go public on Wall Street.
Gambling group Flutter and travel operator Tui then left the UK to list overseas, while other companies, such as cybersecurity firm Darktrace, were snapped up on the cheap by foreign predators.
Today, mining giant Anglo American is in the sights of Australia’s BHP and even Shell has flirted with the possibility of leaving London.
But with the FTSE 100 hitting record highs in recent days, investors realize there are bargains to be had.
Shein, the Chinese-founded online fashion giant, looks increasingly likely to announce a £60bn IPO in London, while Anglo is on track to spin off its De Beers diamond business for £4bn. millions.
The UK could also be boosted by the £15bn spin-off of Unilever’s ice cream business, although Amsterdam and New York are in the running.
Meanwhile, British technology company Raspberry Pi has confirmed plans for a £500m IPO in London and there is speculation about a possible £7bn listing for Boots.
Also likely to stimulate interest is the public sale of part of the Government’s stake in NatWest – due within weeks – which could attract investors due to the suspension of stamp duty on shares.
Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: ‘The pessimists have not stopped the FTSE 100 from setting new all-time highs.
Now that there appears to be more interest in the UK stock market in general, it is no surprise that more companies want to list in London as it still has a lot to offer.’
But there may be more work to do as figures show billions are still being withdrawn from UK equity funds.
And reforms are being implemented to try to get buyers like pension companies back into the market.