Singapore-headquartered fashion giant Shein is set to boost the FTSE 100 as early as next month with a much-anticipated London IPO, This Is Money has reported.
The news follows chancellor of the exchequer Jeremy Hunt’s meeting with Shein executive chair Donald Tang in February as part of British regulators’ and government officials’ efforts to persuade the company to explore a public listing in the UK after uncertainty around its US IPO.
The fashion giant had indicated its intention to float on the New York Stock Exchange but faced “tougher than expected scrutiny” from US regulators in the nation’s election year, as well as a “lengthy approval process” including several Chinese regulators.
Shein could become the London Stock Exchange’s second-largest IPO in history after the 2011 stock market debut of Glencore International, the commodities trading and mining group, a capital markets banker said.
The Financial Times reported that Shein’s profits in 2023 reached $2bn (£1.6bn), with gross merchandise value coming in at $45bn (£36bn) – more than the net profits generated by competitors such as H&M and Primark, but behind those made by Spanish powerhouse Inditex, which owns chains including Zara.
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