Broker Sees London IPO Recovery as Pipeline of Issuers Grows

Peel Hunt, a leading City broker, said the London Stock Exchange may see a revival in new listings after a prolonged drought, with a growing pipeline of companies preparing to float and several "jumbo issuers" monitoring windows for 2026.

The broker said the UK market environment is "increasingly supportive" for fresh initial public offerings as the FTSE 100 hit record highs and volatility linked to trade tariffs eased. Peel Hunt added that IPO activity has restarted after the summer and is expected to pick up in the coming weeks, with numerous candidates in the UK and Europe "monitoring near-term windows" and "holding de-risking processes with investors" ahead of potential launches.

London's public markets have been quiet compared with rivals. The exchange recorded nine new listings in the first half of 2025, raising £182.8 million, well below US and broader European volumes, according to data cited by Peel Hunt and analysis by law firm White & Case. The UK experienced a flurry of issuances in 2021 that largely disappointed investors, and many potential issuers were subsequently lured to US exchanges by higher valuations and deeper liquidity.

Peel Hunt said the near-term pipeline is likely to be dominated by mid-cap companies with market capitalisations between £1 billion and £5 billion, but it expects that "a number of jumbo issuers are monitoring windows in 2026." The broker emphasised that successful conversions of candidates into trading companies will be important to restore confidence across the broader pipeline.

Recent market activity in Europe includes planned listings such as SMG in Zurich and NOBA Bank in Stockholm, while high-profile US listings have underscored investors' appetite for successful floats. The $1.37 billion Klarna listing in the United States, for example, saw shares jump about 30% on their first day of trading.

Peel Hunt acknowledged that, despite the improving backdrop, the market has lacked transaction datapoints to prove a sustained recovery. "With UK IPO issuers now increasingly lining up, it is important that we now see some successful conversion of the pipeline to help build confidence and encourage others to come to market," the broker said.

Market participants said companies are conducting de-risking exercises with institutional investors and watching pricing and liquidity windows closely before committing to listings. If mid- and large-cap IPOs trade well, analysts expect that could draw further issuers back to London, reversing the trend of exits to New York and other exchanges.

For now, the outlook remains cautious but constructive: Peel Hunt expects the second half of the year to provide the first real test of the UK IPO market in some time. Observers said the performance of any deals that do come to market in the coming months will be closely watched by companies, advisers and investors contemplating future floats.