JUNE 3 – Online fast fashion firm Shein is planning to file paperwork for a potential London share listing as soon as this week, according to reports. An initial public offering (IPO) could value the company at around $66bn (£51.7bn).
The firm, which was founded in China and now headquartered in Singapore, stepped up preparations for a share sale in the UK after it faced regulatory hurdles and intense scrutiny in the US. A Shein spokesperson declined to comment. Shein has in the past been linked to unethical business practices, including forced labour allegations.
A confidential filing with the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority could lay the groundwork for a major London stock market share sale. While it may come this week, Sky News, which first reported the story, said it could be moved to later in June. “This could be big news for the London stock market – there haven’t exactly been many IPOs this year,” Colleen McHugh, chief investment officer at Wealthify, the investment firm, told the BBC’s Today programme.
Shein filed paperwork for a potential New York listing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Reuters news agency reported in January. However, the company has faced pushback from US lawmakers over concerns about its links to China as tensions between Washington and Beijing intensify. Last year, a group of US lawmakers called for Shein to be investigated over claims that Uyghur forced labour is used to make some of the clothes it sells.
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