London’s storied status as a global financial powerhouse is slipping away, and with every IPO that doesn’t materialise or company that decamps to the US, it becomes clearer that the City is in its death throes , says Owen Matthews As a former mid-cap ECM investment banker, I’ve watched with despair as the lights dim on the once vibrant UK equity capital markets. London’s storied status as a global financial powerhouse is slipping away, and with every IPO that doesn’t materialise or company that decamps to the US, it becomes clearer that the City is in its death throes. The headlines speak for themselves: the value of companies fleeing the London Stock Exchange for foreign markets hit an eye-watering £107bn this year.
Ashtead’s departure to the US, following the likes of CRH and Flutter, is merely the latest chapter in this dismal saga. The trend is undeniable, and it’s accelerating – according to accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, 92 companies have delisted from London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM) this year. When did we allow ourselves to become a second-rate venue, a ghost town for growth companies? Many of my former colleagues were taken in by Labour’s so-called “pro-growth” agenda before the election.
Rachel Reeves was toasted as a “sensible woman” and Keir Starmer was making “all the right noises”, promising reforms to stimulate investment and foster competitiveness. But instead of rejuvenation, Reeves’s autumn budget delivered .
