The UK finally got one of its tech champions to list in London, now it’s moving to New York
London’s stock market is something of a dinosaur, dominated by decades-old firms in sleepier sectors like mining, banking, pharmaceuticals, energy and consumer goods.
Dinosaurs, as it happens, seem to be in demand right now — with the FTSE 100 enjoying a rare period of outperformance against its American peers — but the lack of homegrown tech companies on Britain’s public markets has long been a disappointment to policymakers.
Given the barren tech landscape, when fintech firm Wise (formerly TransferWise) debuted on London’s markets in a much-hyped direct listing in 2021, it was a major win for UK PLC. Now, after a dearth of new IPOs in the UK, Wise is giving up the ghost, with plans to “switch its primary listing to New York in an attempt to attract more investors and boost its valuation”, per the FT.
As if to add insult to injury, shares in its London listing shot up in early trading on Thursday, climbing as much as 11%. Investors appear to be anticipating higher demand for Wise’s equity stateside, where fast-growing, higher-risk stocks can find billions of dollars to fund growth in the deeper pool of US capital markets.
Given the barren tech landscape, when fintech firm Wise (formerly TransferWise) debuted on London’s markets in a much-hyped direct listing in 2021, it was a major win for UK PLC. Now, after a dearth of new IPOs in the UK, Wise is giving up the ghost, with plans to “switch its primary listing to New York in an attempt to attract more investors and boost its valuation”, per the FT.
As if to add insult to injury, shares in its London listing shot up in early trading on Thursday, climbing as much as 11%. Investors appear to be anticipating higher demand for Wise’s equity stateside, where fast-growing, higher-risk stocks can find billions of dollars to fund growth in the deeper pool of US capital markets.
