Exodus of companies from the London Stock Exchange in recent years

British oil and gas company Diversified Energy announced on September 30 that it would move its main listing to the United States while maintaining a secondary listing in London, in an attempt to access more liquid capital markets, which means a new setback for the London stock exchange, Reuters reports.

According to the cited source, a growing number of companies have either abandoned their plans to list in London, or have completely exited the British market, or have sought to achieve better returns in more solid foreign markets, by "degrading” their London listing and consolidating listings elsewhere. This trend is largely driven by investor opposition and the challenges related to Brexit, which have put pressure on market valuations in the UK.

• Companies leaving the London Stock Exchange in 2025

- AstraZeneca - Although the multinational pharmaceutical giant and one of London's most valuable companies announced in September that it would not leave the London market, it has outlined plans to move to a direct listing of its shares in the US.

The company is valued at £173.21 billion ($233.30 billion), and many industry experts have warned that its move could prompt other large companies to follow suit.

- Petershill Partners - The British investment group announced in September that it would delist from the London Stock Exchange and return money to shareholders, citing dissatisfaction with its share price performance and valuation. The company is valued at £3.32 billion.

- Wise - The British fintech company received shareholder approval on July 28 to move its main listing from London to the US stock market. The company, valued at £10.60 billion, said the move was aimed at improving access to capital and raising its profile among global investors, while maintaining a secondary listing in London.

- Cobalt, the metals investment company backed by mining giant Glencore, abandoned plans to list in London on June 4, a move that some sources said was driven by a lack of demand from investors. The company, valued at around $230 million, would have been the biggest debut on the London market since Air Astana listed in February 2024.

- Indivior, the drugmaker, said in early June it would cancel its secondary listing in London from July 25, citing cost savings and a desire to focus on its US-focused operations.

- Unilever, the consumer goods maker, chose the Amsterdam market in February as the primary listing for its ice cream business. The business, which generated revenue of 8.3 billion euros ($9.76 billion) in 2024, will have secondary listings in London and New York.

- Shein, the Chinese online fast-fashion retailer, is preparing to list in Hong Kong after its proposed London IPO failed to get the green light from Chinese regulators, according to sources cited by Reuters. However, before its attempt to list in London, Shein had been eyeing a New York listing as part of its efforts to gain legitimacy as a global rather than Chinese company and access a broader pool of large Western investors.

• Departures in 2024 and 2023

- Just Eat Takeaway - the Amsterdam-listed food delivery company withdrew from the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in December, citing efforts to reduce administrative and regulatory costs. The company has a market value of euro4.03 billion.

- Ashtead - the second-largest equipment rental company in the US announced in December that it plans to move its listing to New York. With a market value of £20.95 billion, Ashtead has been listed in London since 1986 and became a major player in the US in the early 2000s.

- Flutter Entertainment - the owner of FanDuel moved its primary listing to the New York Stock Exchange in 2024, just months after adding a secondary listing in the US.

- Woodside Energy - the oil giant decided in October 2024 to withdraw from the LSE to reduce its administrative costs.

- Unisys - the IT consultancy firm announced in October 2024 its intention to cancel its standard listing on the LSE, citing low trading volumes in its ordinary shares.

- TUI - shareholders of Europe's largest tour operator voted in February 2024 to delist it from the LSE, believing that a single listing in Germany would better reflect its ownership and trading models in February 2024.

The Hanover-based company has a market value of euro3.93 billion.

- Marsh & Mclennan - the insurance brokerage giant, valued at $99.08 billion, announced its intention to delist from the LSE, citing low trading volume in November 2023, with its primary listing remaining on the NYSE.

- Kingspan - the Irish construction company, valued at $12.79 billion, delisted from the LSE in 2023, citing negligible trading of its shares in London. The company maintained its primary listing in Dublin.

- CRH - the building materials solutions provider, which has a market value of $80.44 billion, moved its primary listing to New York in 2023, while maintaining a standard listing on the LSE.

- Arm Holdings, the UK chip designer, has chosen Nasdaq over London for its 2023 IPO - the largest of its kind that year. The company, valued at $149.88 billion, was listed on the London Stock Exchange for 18 years until 2016, when it was taken private by SoftBank in a $32 billion acquisition.

• One departure each in 2022 and 2021

- Ferguson, a North American-focused plumbing and heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) supplier, moved its primary listing to New York in 2022.

- BHP, the world's largest mining company by market value, made Australia its primary stock exchange when it ended its dual listing structure in 2021. The company was the second-largest by market value in London when it left the LSE.