UK's Wise to move primary listing to US in latest blow for London

(Reuters) -Money transfer company Wise on Thursday said it planned to move its primary listing to the U.S. from London, the latest British company to quit the London stock market in search of a bigger valuation elsewhere.

Wise, which made its debut on the London market in 2021, said in April it was exploring its listing options but news of a move to the United States surprised analysts. The company's shares rallied more than 8%, giving it a market value of more than 12 billion pounds ($16.28 billion).

The decision is another blow for Britain's hopes of reviving the London market, where the appeal of deeper and better performing markets elsewhere has encouraged companies to switch their listing while fewer new firms have joined.

CEO and co-founder Kristo Kaarmann said that Wise's move was due to the U.S. having the world's deepest and most liquid capital markets, making it easier for investors to buy shares in the company.

Shares of the fintech company rose 8.9% to 1,179 pence. They have risen about 40% in the last 12 months but that follows years in which the shares traded below their 2021 listing price.

Wise said it would maintain a secondary listing in the British capital.

The UK has been trying to make London a more attractive destination for companies to list and raise funds, and last year made major changes to its rules for company listings, but is still struggling to attract initial public offerings.

In recent months, Unilever chose Amsterdam over London or New York for the primary listing of its ice-cream business while Singapore-headquartered fast-fashion firm Shein has been considering Hong Kong after plans for a London IPO encountered Chinese regulatory hurdles, according to sources.

Metals investor Cobalt Holdings, backed by Glencore, also scrapped its plans for a London IPO on Wednesday.

"The government has definitely made an effort to align to the U.S. or other large capital markets in terms of the rules and set-ups that are common here … so anything that can be done in the U.S., I think, can be done in the UK as well, so that is not the reason," said Kaarmann.

"But on the other hand we kind of have to accept the reality of where the world’s capital is concentrated."

A spokesperson for Wise declined to comment on whether the company had considered listing in other locations.

British peer Revolut, which competes with Wise on pricing and features, has also been aggressively pushing into the U.S.

Wise also reported its annual earnings, where underlying pretax profit rose 17% to 282.1 million pounds in the year ending 31 March 2025.

Wise said it would continue to invest in the UK, where 20% of its staff and most of its executive team are based.

($1 = 0.7371 pounds)

(Reporting by Dhanush Vignesh Babu, Yamini Kalia and Prerna Bedi in Bengaluru and Elizabeth Howcroft in Paris; Editing by Janane Venkatraman, Christopher Cushing and Kate Mayberry)