The status of London as a leading financial destination is once again in the spotlight, after a British fintech firm opted to move its listing to the United States.

Wise is a British fintech firm that provides international money transfers and multi-currency accounts.

CNBC noted that in its full-year earnings statement, Wise said it will move to a dual listing, with its main listing hub shifting to the US, while maintaining a secondary listing in London.

Listing switch

Wise (formerly known as TransferWise) had debuted on the London Stock Exchange in 2021, and the decision to shift its primary listing to the US, once again casts doubts on London’s ability to host (and retain) major tech listings.

Wise’s 2021 listing on the LSE had valued the fintech at £8 billion ($10.84 billion) at the time. It is now valued at £11.07 billion.

But now it has decided to move to a dual listing, with its main listing hub shifting to the US while maintaining a secondary listing in London.

“This would allow Wise’s shares to trade on both a US stock exchange and the LSE,” Wise said in its earnings announcement.

Shares of Wise ended the day up 7.1 percent, after rising by nearly 11 percent earlier on Thursday, CNBC noted.

London listings

The confirmation from Wise that it will shift its primary listing to the United States brings the doubts that London has the ability to attract and retain listings of big tech firms.

CNBC noted that London is often criticized for lacking the depth of liquidity and industry expertise from investment analysts to accommodate such transactions.

The London Stock Exchange took a major blow in 2023, when British chip designer ARM Holdings opted to relist its shares only in the United States, despite the lobbying of three different British Rpime Ministers.

Doubts over London’s stock market is not just limited to the tech space only.

On Wednesday, Glencore-backed metals investor Cobalt Holdings announced it was scrapping plans to go public in London, CNBC noted. The IPO was expected to be the largest listing in London since early 2024.