The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) has once again emerged as the global leader in initial public offering (IPO) proceeds for the first half of 2024, raising $12 billion as the IPO market shows signs of recovery after two sluggish years.

New York confirms its growing advantage over London, which has struggled to compete for major debuts in recent years to the extent that UK companies prefer choosing Wall Street over Paternoster Square.

NYSE Leads Global IPO Market in First Half of 2024

The Big Board, owned by Intercontinental Exchange Inc. (NYSE: ICE), hosted seven of the ten largest US transactions in the period, including the two biggest IPOs: Viking Holdings (NYSE: VIK) and Amer Sports (NYSE: AS). The exchange also saw a resurgence in technology listings, with notable debuts from Rubrik (NYSE: RBRK), Reddit (NYSE: RDDT), and Ibotta (NYSE: IBTA).

"We welcomed a reopening of the IPO window in the first six months of 2024, allowing companies from around the globe and across the economy to tap the public markets following two somewhat subdued years for new issuance," said Michael Harris, Global Head of Capital Markets at the NYSE.

The exchange's strong performance in 2024 marks a significant turnaround, with IPO proceeds already surpassing the total raised in the past two years. This uptick suggests a renewed appetite for public offerings among both companies and investors.

International firms continued to choose the NYSE as their listing venue, with Dublin-based Flutter Entertainment (NYSE: FLUT), operator of FanDuel, moving its primary listing to the exchange. The NYSE also maintained its lead in attracting companies transferring from other exchanges, with five firms making the switch in the first half, including Virtus Investment Partners (NYSE: VRTS) and Kforce (NYSE: KFRC).

“In this environment, companies overwhelmingly chose the NYSE to list their shares, and the proceeds raised from their IPOs far outpaced the rest of the industry. As we move into the second half of the year, we look forward to welcoming many more leading companies to our unparalleled NYSE community,” Harris added.

Corporate spinoffs further expanded the NYSE community, with General Electric splitting into GE Aerospace (NYSE: GE) and GE Vernova (NYSE: GEV), while 3M spun off its healthcare business as Solventum (NYSE: SOLV). These new entities represent a combined market value of $140 billion.

London Falls Behind

As New York enters 2024 with a strong performance in IPOs, its biggest competitor, London, is falling behind. Finance Magnates reported a few months ago that Marex Group, a UK-based financial services platform, joined the ranks of companies that chose to list not on the native LSE, but in the United States, hoping for greater capital potential, liquidity , and investor interest. This move has added Marex to the growing list of UK-based firms seeking to go public in the US market.

In 2023, the US dominated the IPO market, attracting the largest number of offerings in the Western world. Meanwhile, in London, IPOs fell by 36% over the same period. After a record year for London in 2021, where over $20 billion was raised through IPOs, the following two years saw drastic declines. These were so significant that the UK's IPO market did not exceed $1 billion last year.

The latest EY study for Q1 2024 showed that the IPO market in London has rebounded, with three listings raising £283.8 million. However, this is still significantly less than in the US.