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The UK Treasury met with the heads of some of the country’s most valuable fintech firms on Tuesday, including Monzo and Revolut, as part of a renewed push to encourage high-profile listings on the London Stock Exchange.
Economic Secretary Emma Reynolds hosted executives from Monzo, Revolut, Clearscore, and OakNorth, alongside London Stock Exchange CEO Dame Julia Hoggett and Simon Walls of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), according to people familiar with the meeting.
The talks, first reported by Sky News, come as Monzo explores a potential initial public offering (IPO) that could value the neobank at £7 billion, following a sharp rise in fintech activity during 2024.
The Treasury’s outreach comes amid growing concern over the health of London’s public markets. According to LSE data, 88 companies either delisted or moved their primary listings away from the exchange last year, including names like Flutter and Darktrace. Just 18 firms joined the main market in the same period.
Officials hope that landing a major fintech IPO could help reverse that trend and send a message that London remains a viable home for fast-growing tech firms.
The FCA, meanwhile, promised changes to make the UK listing process more accessible. At a recent IPO Forum, the regulator said it would “put the public back in IPOs,” according to City AM.
The IPO market for fintech has cooled dramatically since the post-COVID frenzy of 2021, when over 100 companies raised nearly $297 billion globally. That number dropped off a cliff — just 86 raised a combined $32.8 billion between 2022 and 2024, according to PitchBook data.
Still, bringing high-growth firms like Revolut to London may prove difficult. CEO Nik Storonsky said late last year that a UK listing didn’t make sense compared to the deeper liquidity and lower trading costs of U.S. exchanges.
Others in the sector share similar doubts. Zopa Bank CEO Jaidev Janardana said in April that current conditions were far from ideal for new floats. “The business is ready,” he said, “but the markets need to be ready as well.”
That said, Klarna’s upcoming U.S. stock market debut is also turning heads in fintech circles, with investors and insiders betting the move could open the floodgates for long-delayed listings from British startups.
At its peak, Klarna was valued at $45.6 billion — that figure later dropped to $6.7 billion in a 2022 funding round. Now, it’s expected to return with a valuation north of $15 billion, a source familiar with the plans told Reuters, with pricing likely in early April.
