SoftBank-backed Arm rules out UK listing for now to focus on US IPO

British semiconductor design company Arm has decided against selling shares on the London Stock Exchange for now, dealing a blow to UK politicians who were lobbying the home-grown technology giant ahead of its initial public offering.

The SoftBank Group Corp-owned company will instead focus on a sole listing in New York for Arm later this year, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified because the information is not public. The company is keeping its headquarters in Cambridge, England, for the time being and has not ruled out the potential for a secondary listing in London down the road – but one is not likely, the people said.

SoftBank declined to comment. The company was aiming last year for a valuation of at least US$60 billion for Arm, people familiar with the matter said at the time.

SoftBank is poised to appoint banks to lead the transaction as soon as this month, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Barclays, according to people familiar with the matter. It is aiming to price the IPO at the end of the summer and then complete the offering later this year, the people said.

Arm is a jewel of the UK tech industry. Its technology is found in most of the world’s smartphones and is pervasive across the electronics industry. Tokyo-based SoftBank’s US$32 billion deal to buy the business in 2016 came with promises that it would create more UK jobs and leave the headquarters where it was. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been courting the company and its backer for a listing on the London Stock Exchange.

Sunak’s office declined to comment. SoftBank shares were little changed in early Tokyo trading.