Is Shein finally set to decide on a London IPO?

Speculation is mounting that Shein will finally decide to list in London rather than New York with reports that its IPO could come “next month”, which given the current date could mean anything from this week to a few weeks’ time.

The company itself is still not commenting but reports in the British financial press said it has made its decision after it had initially been intending to float in New York, where e-commerce businesses tend to have much higher valuations. But it was deterred from that by the less welcoming attitude there at the moment for China-linked companies.

The London Stock Exchange (LSE) has been somewhat battered in recent periods with London shares, as mentioned, generally having lower valuations than those in New York, with fewer big IPOs, and with previously-listed UK shares having been taken private (like Ted Baker, Moss Bros, Seraphine and — soon — Superdry).

But a Shein float would be a major coup for what was once the world’s most prestigious stock exchange.

The British government has been lobbying hard to get Shein to choose London, despite worries about the business’s impact on sales at home-grown firms like ASOS and Boohoo.

There are also concerns about workers’ rights at its Chinese manufacturing plants.

Shein was founded in China but is now headquartered in Singapore. It exports to 150+ countries and the UK is one of its larger markets.