Shein decision on London share listing expected soon

Shein could be on the verge of listing its shares in London rather than New York with reports suggesting that a move could happen as early as next week.

The talk is of a listing valuing it at around £71 billion, which would put it almost in the top five by market value of all London-listed stocks.

It was previously reported that Shein’s chairman Donald Tang met UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt last month to discuss the prospect of a London float, something that the London Stock Exchange would certainly welcome. 

In recent years its former pre-eminent position has been eroded and many of the top listings have happened in New York (such as the ill-fated Farfetch float). Meanwhile, London’s stock exchange has lost a number of previously listed fashion firms such as Ted Baker and Seraphine, while Superdry is also mulling a go-private move.

This Is Money reported the chance that a decision could be made soon and said Shein is believed to see less political risk with a UK float as the mood in the US is increasingly less welcoming for Chinese firms (while based in Singapore, Shein was founded 12 years ago in Nanjing, China).

Shein has grown increasingly popular in Western markets in recent years, despite ongoing criticism about environmental issues and working conditions for those making the products that are among the lowest priced of the fast-fashion giants.

Its fast-growing sales have been a problem for many homegrown European online retailers and in the UK, Boohoo is seen as having suffered in particular as Shein has in many ways beaten it at its own game with fashion that’s cheaper and faster than Boohoo could manage.

But whether talk of a London float is practical or mere wishful thinking remains to be seen. The rumours may suggest that we’ll find out very soon, but for now Shein hasn’t commented.