Shein’s Derailed Listing Has UK Investors Looking at ‘Notable IPOs’

With Shein’s IPO in limbo, U.K. investors are reportedly seeking a new hope.

As Bloomberg News reported Sunday (May 11), the highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) by Shein would have valued the fast-fashion retailer at up to $67 billion. It was also seen as a possible spark to relight IPO activity in the U.K.

Then came the U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods, leading Shein to take a time out while it examines the effect of the new levies on its business.

Against this backdrop, the report added, the U.K. equity capital markets have been struggling, with an IPO drought made worse by high-profile companies choosing to list overseas. Fundraising from London IPOs dropped below $1 billion last year, Bloomberg said, marking just the second time since the 2008-2009 financial crisis that number had gone so low.

“At the start of the year, there was real optimism for a cyclical rebound in IPOs,” Mike Jacobs, a partner specializing in capital markets at law firm Herbert Smith Freehills, told Bloomberg.

“But macro and market volatility — particularly sectors exposed to tariffs — has reasserted itself with a vengeance.”

It’s not just the IPO market that’s struggling. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) have fallen to their lowest level in 20 years, according to a report last week by Reuters.

M&A contracts, a crucial measure of economic health and business optimism, dropped to 2,330 in April, the lowest level since February 2005.

According to a recent PYMNTS Intelligence report, “Tariffs and Business Uncertainty: The Current State of Play,” many companies remain wary of what impacts tariffs could have, with most fearing upheaval with their supply chains.

“Mid-sized companies widely expect supply chain disruptions and rising costs, and those fears increasingly appear justified,” the report said. “Major U.S. ports are sounding alarms about precipitous drops in import volumes, and Walmart, Target and Home Depot CEOs warned Trump of product shortages and higher prices.”

However, the Bloomberg report said, deals scheduled for the next few quarters could offer the spark investors have been hoping for. Even with the tariff war still underway, bankers say many companies are hoping to list once things calm down.

“Most IPO timetables have now shifted,” said Brian Hanratty, head of equity capital markets for British investment bank Peel Hunt. “There are three to five notable London IPOs lined up for the coming quarters.”