Atom Bank boss Mark Mullen has offered a clear indication that the fintech is sticking with London for its highly anticipated IPO, likely to take place this year.
“We are focused on putting the bank in a position where we can list and our assumption, our plan, is to do so in the UK, in London,” Mullen said in an interview with City A.M.
He said “there need be no ambiguity whatsoever” that the bank’s “default assumption” is a London listing.
“The only plan we’ve ever made ourselves would be based upon listing in London,” said Mullen.
The Durham-based challenger bank has stated a number of times its ambition to IPO in the near future. However, the destination, as well as the date, has been the subject of questioning.
Atom raised significant funds last year, with a £75m round in February 2022 followed by a November boost of £30m. However, in its most recent investment round, the bank cast doubt on whether it would stick with the London IPO plan.
The company was previously thought to be heading for a New York listing via a US-based SPAC deal. The £700m merger was called off in September 2022.
With this latest interview, Mullen appears to have made clear that Atom Bank is sticking with London, a boost to the UK public markets.
The London Stock Exchange and associated financial regulators have been keen to encourage more UK tech listings after a disappointing year in 2022. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) earlier this month considered relaxing the listing requirements for companies it wants to attract, notably, Cambridge-based semiconductor firm, Arm.
