As the British government’s hopes for homegrown chip giant Arm Ltd to list in London dim, local investors might still be able to own a slice of the Cambridge, England-based firm.
Even if Arm picks the US for an initial public offering (IPO), the British public could buy shares in the chip designer through a retail offer, according to PrimaryBid Ltd, a firm that specializes in such offers.
PrimaryBid has presented the idea to government ministers, having previously organized a similar arrangement alongside the US listing of the owner of luxury members’ clubs Soho House Ltd in 2021.
Photo: AFP
“UK retail investors want and deserve access to Arm’s IPO,” PrimaryBid chief executive officer Anand Sambasivan said. “A London listing would be ideal, but there’s no reason the British public should miss out.”
Arm and the British Treasury declined to comment.
A representative for Softbank Group Corp did not respond to a request for comment.
Arm owner Softbank — which is also PrimaryBid’s largest shareholder — intends to put the unit back on the market and was in March last year targeting a valuation of at least US$60 billion.
Arm is central to the chip industry with its processor designs powering about 95 percent of mobile devices, its Web site said.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who last month spoke with Arm CEO Rene Haas and Softbank founder Masayoshi Son, has been lobbying for an Arm listing in London and the US, the Financial Times reported.
That effort has focused on making the case for a dual primary listing — a boost for the City of London’s post-Brexit ambitions.
That would give Arm access to London Stock Exchange indices, boosting liquidity in its shares, but Son has said his focus is to take Arm public in the US because of its deep investor base and attractive valuations.
The process has been delayed due to uncertainty in global markets.
The PrimaryBid proposal could leave the UK with the consolation prize of a retail offer alongside a US listing. It could also help promote a government push to attract people’s savings into tech companies with an aim of boosting their returns and helping growth sectors.
A full UK listing of Arm would be a “major coup,” said Steven Fine, chief executive officer of City of London broker Peel Hunt.
Whatever the final plan, “we also believe there would be significant retail demand,” he said.
PrimaryBid estimates there could be ￡3 billion (US$3.7 billion) of demand from ordinary investors in Arm, which had a substantial following among private investors when it was previously listed in the UK.
Even if PrimaryBid’s pitch comes off, there remains plenty to do to repair the UK’s international reputation as open for business after Brexit, former Confederation of British Industry president Paul Drechsler said.
“Everyone used to want to come in from students to old people,” he said. “Now where are we?”
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