A growing number of major tech companies are turning away from the London Stock Exchange in favour of listings in the US, citing better valuations, deeper capital markets, and greater investor appetite for growth.
Wise and Others Moving Away
Last week, UK fintech firm Wise announced plans to shift its primary listing from London to New York. The move follows similar decisions by chip designer Arm, which chose Nasdaq in 2023, and Just Eat Takeaway, which exited London for Amsterdam. Wise’s CEO Kristo Käärmann said the shift would provide access to “the world’s deepest and most liquid capital market” and the largest potential customer base for its services.
Klarna, Spotify and other European tech players have already listed in the US or confirmed plans to do so. Revolut’s founder recently summed up the sentiment, describing a London listing as “not rational” under current conditions.
Bigger Capital Pools and Bolder Investors
It seems that this trend is being driven primarily (and not surprisingly) by financial factors. For example, the US offers much larger pools of capital, higher valuations, and a more supportive investor culture. The New York Stock Exchange has a market capitalisation of about $27 trillion, compared to £2.8 trillion for the LSE. It’s this sheer scale that’s creating more liquidity and attracts more institutional investment.
For example, UK semiconductor and chip design company Arm achieved a far higher valuation on Nasdaq than analysts expected it could reach in London. Wise is hoping for the same, believing US investors are more likely to back its revenue-first, long-term model.
US markets also tend to favour growth over immediate profit, and this appears to align more closely with the business models of many tech firms. In the UK, by contrast, investors often demand revenue visibility early on and, for high-growth companies, that kind of risk aversion can be limiting.
A Shrinking Share of Global Markets
The decline of the LSE is visible in the numbers. For example, in 2024, 88 companies delisted or moved their primary listing away, which is the highest annual outflow in over a decade. At the turn of the millennium, UK-listed companies made up 11 per cent of the MSCI World Index. Today, that share has dropped to just 4 per cent.
For the wider UK economy, this shift poses long-term risks. For example, as more firms list overseas, the UK loses influence over its most dynamic sectors. There is also a risk of a talent drain, as companies with international ambitions may choose to relocate senior teams and operations.
Deliveroo’s underwhelming 2021 IPO on the LSE is often cited as a turning point. The company’s falling share price and lukewarm investor reception cast doubt over London’s ability to support innovative tech listings. That failure has made other firms wary of following the same route.
Government Reforms Are on the Table
That said, UK policymakers now appear to be trying to respond. For example, the Edinburgh Reforms aimed to improve access to public markets for scale-ups, and Labour’s Chancellor Rachel Reeves has proposed further deregulation. Changes include relaxing rules on sovereign fund investment, reducing tax friction for traders, and streamlining disclosure obligations.
Dual-class share structures, which allow founders to retain control, are also under discussion. Raspberry Pi recently adopted such a structure in its successful LSE debut, suggesting the market can support innovative tech companies when the conditions are right.
AIM’s Decline and the Call for Radical Change
The UK’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM), originally designed to support fast-growing smaller companies, has lost nearly 400 listings in the past nine years. Critics argue it has become too weak to serve its intended purpose, with concerns over liquidity and transparency deterring new listings.
Benedict Macon-Cooney from the Tony Blair Institute has called for a far more radical overhaul. He argues that the UK needs to stop “nibbling” at the problem and instead make high-growth sectors a national economic priority. That means rethinking regulation, investment, skills, and infrastructure to support innovation from the ground up.
New York Isn’t the Only Winner
While US exchanges are drawing the lion’s share of attention, other global markets are also benefiting. Amsterdam, in particular, has positioned itself as a hub for digital and fintech firms. For example, Just Eat Takeaway moved its primary listing there in search of a more aligned investor base.
Some believe the UK could build partnerships with emerging markets such as India, Nigeria, or the Middle East to attract listings from new tech sectors. ReachX CEO Rafael S. Lajeunesse argues that offering structured dual-listing pathways could help London gain exposure to future tech powerhouses outside of the US.
Making the LSE Fit for Growth Companies
Several experts believe the LSE could still thrive if it focused more on attracting £500m to £1bn market cap tech companies, i.e. the kinds that might struggle to gain attention on Nasdaq but are too big for venture capital alone.
For example, Raspberry Pi succeeded in part because its leadership team understood the IPO process and prepared well for the demands of public investors. More tech founders could follow suit with the right education, support, and guidance.
There are also structural changes that could help. Reducing the cost of listing, increasing analyst coverage for growth firms, allowing dual-share structures, and introducing faster listing routes are all on the table.
What Does This Mean For Your Business?
What’s now becoming clear is that the London Stock Exchange is no longer the default destination for ambitious UK tech companies. For many founders, the capital, scale and investor mindset offered by the US are proving too attractive to ignore. This is not simply a matter of prestige or visibility. The decision to list in New York or Amsterdam is often about achieving a better valuation and securing the kind of long-term backing needed to grow globally. If London cannot compete on those fundamentals, it risks being left behind.
The concern is not just for the stock exchange itself but for the broader ecosystem around it. When companies go elsewhere to list, there is a knock-on effect across the UK’s professional services, capital markets, and innovation economy. It becomes harder for growth-stage UK investors to plan domestic exits. It also sends the wrong signal to the next generation of entrepreneurs who may begin building with one eye already on an overseas IPO. For UK businesses more broadly, this erosion of the local tech sector could weaken supply chains, reduce local collaboration opportunities, and limit talent retention in key innovation areas.
That said, there is still time to turn things around, but it will require more than minor regulatory tweaks. The UK will need to create a genuinely competitive listing environment that reflects how tech businesses operate and grow. That means improving access to capital, updating market rules to support dual-share structures, and better educating investors on modern business models. It also means giving smaller tech firms a credible path to public funding that isn’t crowded out by legacy sectors.
Recent success stories like Raspberry Pi show what’s possible when those conditions are met. If the LSE can build on that momentum, focus on realistic growth sectors, and reframe its pitch to scale-up companies, it may yet reclaim its place as a serious option for the UK’s most promising tech businesses. Until then, more of them will continue to look west.
