UK to finalise biggest shake-up of company listing rules
written by Bella Palmer
The changes are expected to include merging the more heavily regulated premium segment with the less onerously regulated standard segment, in a bid to cut red tape
Britain will finalise its biggest shake-up of company listing rules in decades over the coming weeks, regulators said on Monday, as industry officials cautioned that the reform alone would not transform London's ability to catch up with New York.
The FCA's executive director Sarah Pritchard said the listings changes would help boost UK growth and competitiveness.
The changes are expected to include merging the more heavily regulated premium segment with the less onerously regulated standard segment, in a bid to cut red tape.
Investors would rely on more disclosures from firms rather than on mandatory requirements that they be consulted.
But as we know that these reforms will involve a different balance of risk, we have sought to engage extensively across the market, including with investors, to build as much consensus as possible before we reach our final decisions by the summer, she told a City & Financial conference.
Britain has set out a welter of regulatory changes to strengthen London post-Brexit as a global financial centre, but so far this year it has lagged New York and Europe overall in IPOs.
Per se, I do not think the listing rules change or transform the attraction of London as a listing venue, according to Charlie Lytle, chairman of corporate broking at Goldman Sachs bank. Lytle added that it would remove some longstanding regulatory barriers.
It was also unclear if the expected sale of the government's remaining shares in NatWest bank to retail investors would "light a fuse or just be a one off" boost, Lytle added.
A series of IPOs would be very helpful, Lytle added.
Gavin Lewis, MD and head of UK Institutional client business at asset manager BlackRock, said the lack of listings could be a symptom of Britain's "relative decline" after falling productivity over a number of years.
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