The London Stock Exchange (LSE) today confirmed amendments to its Admission and Disclosure Standards that will apply following changes to the Listing Rules announced by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) on 11 July 2024 and due to become effective on 29 July 2024.

The FCA has determined to replace the standard and premium listing segments with a single listing segment. Accordingly, the proposed changes to the Standards are to reflect this change to the FCA’s Listing Rules. As these amendments are to align the Standards with relevant changes to the FCA’s Listing Rules, these changes will not be consulted upon.

In addition, noting changes to the Listing Rules and in particular changes to the requirement for shares in public hands, the Exchange is closing the High Growth Segment (HGS) given that its purpose is now redundant.

As there are no issuers admitted to HGS and none have been admitted to HGS for over 12 months, these changes will not be consulted upon.

In rules published today, the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has set out a simplified listings regime with a single category and streamlined eligibility for those companies seeking to list their shares in the UK.

The overhaul of listing rules better aligns the UK’s regime with international market standards. It also ensures investors will have the information they need to make decisions about their money, while maintaining appropriate investor protections to hold the management of the companies they co-own to account.

According to the UK Listing Review, the number of listed companies in the UK has fallen by about 40% from a recent peak in 2008. Between 2015 and 2020, the UK accounted for only 5% of Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) globally.