The survey found that 94% of European and UK equity capital markets leaders believe large international companies would consider listing in New York, with London the second choice (86%), while Amsterdam is a distant third (50%).

Respondents also said the UK IPO market will return to normal activity levels in 2025, although two-thirds of leaders said EMEA IPOs in 2024 will be led by the Middle East and Germany.

Kazakh airline Air Astana plans dual London listing

Aadam Brown, head of independent equity capital markets advisory at KPMG UK, said: “When it comes to where to list, it boils down to identifying the natural footprint or home of the company – usually determined by factors such as the location of a company’s headquarters and its largest sales region.

“For those exploring foreign listing venues beyond their home country, there needs to be a strong rationale.

“Our survey shows that alongside New York, London is still considered a key destination of choice for large international companies.”

KPMG noted the challenging economic environment has contributed to persistent fund outflows from the UK equity market, affecting UK IPOs in the last few years.

Brown added the current backdrop has slowed the recovery of both the UK and European IPO markets. Although a recovery was forecast for the second half of 2023, the current expectation predicts its arrival towards the end of 2024 and into 2025.

Yet, he noted, the recovery could be accelerated in the event of a “few successful IPOs”.

“It takes time to prepare for an IPO, so businesses will be thinking carefully about their options and getting ready now. Current market conditions should not deter companies from preparing, as history tells us IPO markets can open quickly off the back of positive sentiment,” he added. 

The London Tunnels set to become UK’s first IPO of 2024

KPMG highlighted the Financial Conduct Authority’s push to reform the UK listings regime in a bid to improve attractiveness for IPOs, but 78% of respondents deemed pension and ISA reforms the most important actions required to bolster UK public markets.

Brown continued: “While ECM leaders were slightly more conservative on predicting a return to normalised UK IPO market conditions in this year’s survey, it does feel like we are heading to an inflection point. Better market sentiment and investor appetite will begin to shine through.

“It only takes a few successful IPOs of high-quality companies to turn markets around, and there is every reason to believe this inflection point will occur in 2024.”

So far, two companies have expressed interest in floating on the London Stock Exchange: The London Tunnels and Air Astana, with the latter seeking a dual listing in London and Kazakhstan.