Shein is considering changing its IPO to London as it’s hit with obstacles to its planned New York float
Jeremy Hunt held talks with the boss of the fast fashion giant in a bid to persuade him to commit to what would be one of London’s biggest corporate flotations, Sky News reports.
The chancellor met Donald Tang, Shein’s executive chairman, this month as part of British regulators’ and government officials’ efforts to convince it to list in the UK.
Shein is reportedly concerned its application for a US listing will likely be turned down by the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to The Times, London is the likely frontrunner from a series of potential stock markets such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
Shein is understood to be seeking a valuation of up to $71.02bn, which would make it one of the top ten largest businesses on the FTSE100.
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Despite this, in January Bloomberg reported its investors had recently attempted to offload shares in private market deals valuing it between £35bn and £43.4bn.
The retailer is thought to still be working on its US IPO listing application, but would need a new overseas listing approval from Chinese regulators if changing from New York to London.
The UK’s courting of Shein comes as the fast fashion giant ramps up its expansion in the country. Last week, the Singapore-headquartered firm was understood to be in the process of onboarding several Boohoo suppliers.
The online giant sent an invitation email to suppliers used by Boohoo late last year, with some now in discussions with the business’ Chinese office in Guangzhou.
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