Skip to content
Premium Symbol Premium

FCA pledges reforms to reverse ‘significant drop’ in UK IPOs

Sarah Pritchard, executive director, markets, FCA.
Sarah Pritchard, executive director, markets, FCA. Image credit: FCA

The UK’s financial regulator has shared plans to boost London IPOs and address “a significant drop in the number of listed companies in the UK since 2008.”

Sarah Pritchard, executive director of markets and executive director of international at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), said in a speech on Tuesday that the regulator will make better use of its powers to attract more UK public listings.

Pritchard, speaking at the UK Finance and EY: Capital Markets insights launch conference, reflected on the UK’s business strengths, noting how more than 3,000 fintechs were headquartered in the UK in 2021 – four times more than Germany or France.

However, she noted that the UK’s market share has receded against fast-growing powerhouses such as China and India, citing regulation as one of the factors businesses take into account when deciding where to list....