Marex files for US listing in blow to London stock market

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UK commodities brokerage Marex has filed confidential paperwork to list in the US, snubbing London after pulling a plan two years ago to list on its home stock market.

The group is aiming to go public next year after submitting the filing to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The targeted valuation is set to be between $2.2bn and $2.8bn, approximately three to four times more than its previous goal when Marex attempted to list on the London Stock Exchange in 2021, the people said.

Its move is likely to be an early test of investor appetite for new listings in the US after a tepid 2023, when falling valuations and rising market volatility deterred companies from going public. Bankers hope the market will more favourable in the first quarter of next year.

Marex’s decision to go to New York is also a blow to London after the financial services group ran an assessment of both markets for a reboot of its initial public offering. The group, which is an intermediary for deals in energy, agriculture and securities markets, blamed poor market conditions for pulling its 2021 IPO.

It also adds to numerous disappointments this year for the London stock market, which has suffered low trading volumes and struggled to attract and maintain listings.

Some companies, including Irish duo CRH and Smurfit Kappa, have quit the LSE and turned to New York because the US economy is a significant contributor to revenues and stock market valuations tend to be higher. This week Tui, the German tour operator, said it might leave London to concentrate on its main listing in Frankfurt.

Marex has been majority owned by private equity group JRJ, along with partners Trilantic Europe and BXR Group for more than a decade, which will be seeking to cash in via the listing.

The group, which puts on trades and derivatives hedges for big commodity producers and consumers, has grown in part through acquisitions since it was bought by JRJ in 2010.

It has expanded into clearing and risk and pricing technology and bought rival broker ED&F Man Capital Markets last year. The acquisition has helped its US business come to rival the size of its European business, which has traditionally provided the bulk of its revenues.

Marex more than doubled pre-tax profit in the first half of 2023 to $120mn on $1.2bn of revenues, with it citing “significant growth in our operations in North America”.

It employs about 1,800 people and is one of only eight brokers with rights to trade on the historic trading floor of the London Metal Exchange.