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London’s stock market is a better option than New York for a flotation as companies run the risk of “disappearing” in the crowd in the US, according to the chief executive leading one of the largest planned listings in the UK.
Evangelos Mytilineos, head of Greece-based Metlen Energy and Metals, also said the UK’s beleaguered stock market was on course for a revival after one of the quietest years for initial public offerings in 2024.
“Thousands of companies all over the world are flocking to get into the New York Stock Exchange. You run the risk of disappearing in the crowd,” he told the Financial Times.
“I never did in my life like to stay at the end of the queue — there is a huge queue at the moment for New York. Company valuations are sky-high.”
He added: “I’d prefer it, if we managed to secure a position in the FTSE 100. I prefer to be on the screens of all the traders around the world.”
Metlen’s plans to add a primary listing in London are a boost for the UK after fewer than 20 companies listed on the exchange last year — the lowest number since the 2009 financial crash. Others, such as gambling group Flutter, have switched primary listings to the US.
The Greek company in December applied for a primary listing within 18 months in London and, with a market capitalisation of €5bn, is big enough to qualify for a place in the FTSE 100.
It has since 1995 been a member of the Athens Stock Exchange, where it plans to keep a secondary listing.
Mytilineos said there was “no other choice” in Europe when asked why he had opted for London. But he added: “The question could probably be: why not New York? That’s a very interesting question.
“So you have to make up your mind — whether you go to a stock market which is at the top of the tops [New York], or you go to a market which is coming from some difficult years after Brexit, and some turbulent political situations and times, and it’s now slowly picking up again.
“It’s a good opportunity to participate in the revival of the City and the London Stock Exchange.”
Metlen employs more than 6,500 people across 40 countries. As well as its flagship aluminium, alumina and bauxite factory in Greece, it installs power plants and cables, trades gas and supplies energy to households.
Last month, it announced plans to invest €296mn to boost production of alumina and bauxite in Greece, as well as produce gallium, a key metal widely used in electronics, for the first time.
Mytilineos said it was a “mistake” for Europe to have become so reliant on China for the metal, comparing it to Germany’s reliance on gas from Russia, which was exposed as prices soared following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
However, Mytilineos, who is also president of European trade group Eurometaux, highlighted manufacturers’ need for cheap gas to maintain competitiveness.
Asked whether Europe should be turning back to Russian gas, as officials are currently debating, he pointed to widespread European metals plant closures.
“What can I answer you, as president of the European association — no, we don’t want cheap gas? How can I say this? On the other side, what is the political price to have cheap gas?
“This is for politicians to decide. But business is at the table to explain to the politicians the problems that we have.”