Airtel and Sumup set to kick off London’s fintech IPO test
Airtel and Sumup are set to hand a potential $20bn boost to the London Stock Exchange with long-awaited IPOs that could help pave the way for a host of fintech firms to come to market.
Telecommunications giant Airtel is planning to list its mobile money business in London before the end of the year, its parent company has said, in what will be a welcome boost the the market after a moribund year for new listings.
Airtel Money, a digital commerce service that allows users to store money, transfer funds and buy mobile data, had previously looked at the United Arab Emirates and other European venues before London became the top choice, sources told CityAM.
Its parent company, Airtel Africa, is majority-owned by Indian billionaire Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Enterprises and is Africa’s third-largest wireless carrier. One person close to the plans said the deal aimed to broaden Airtel Money’s international investor base and could fetch the company a valuation of up to $10bn.
Should it press ahead with the plans, the listing will provide a proof point to other international companies weighing a London listing and potentially kickstart a wave of new African companies listing on the London Stock Exchange, the person said.
Charles Hall, head of research at Peel Hunt, said: “The UK is a leading player in the fintech space… many of these businesses are considering an IPO and it would be a considerable boost for the UK if they decide to list in London.
“This would also attract a broad range of international fintech businesses which would see London as a more natural listing venue than the US.”
One City source added there was also a growing pipeline of fintechs based in Latin America that were considering London as a more venue over the US, where there is the potential to be dwarfed by giant listed tech companies.
London has suffered a drop-off in listings in recent years and hopes of a revival in 2026 have been curtailed by volatility triggered by the war in Iran. So far, the London Stock Exchange’s biggest IPO of the year has been the National Investment Fund of the Republic of Uzbekistan, which raised $604m in a dual listing in May.
Sumup looks to 2027 for public debut
Payments fintech Sumup has also been tipped for a $10bn listing in London in early 2027. While a 2026 listing had been considered, CityAM understands the deal has been pushed back in a bid to dodge the volatility that has weighed on Europe’s IPO market this year.
One person with knowledge of the discussions said there was “no indication [London] wasn’t the direction of travel” for the listing, though Europe and New York had been considered in the past. They added the firm has “never been in a rush” and was therefore able to take the extra time to wait.
Neil Wilson, market commentator at Saxo, said: “There is absolutely no reason London cannot be the venue of choice for fintechs – it’ll be a big boost bagging Airtel and Sumup and you never know we could see the London Stock Exchange with a bit more tech in its mix”.
Bankers are also looking to avoid a long-list of potentially disruptive political events in the second half of 2026 as they scope out timelines for deals, including the US midterms, Andy Burnham’s government’s first Budget, and UK political party conferences. The potential blockbuster listings of Anthropic and OpenAI in the US also threaten to suck attention and capital away from any live deals in the UK.
Airtel and Sumup’s entrance to the London market will mark the first of what the City is hoping will be a flurry of fintech floats. Treasury and LSE officials have courted top names including Monzo, Zilch and Revolut in hopes of luring them into listing their shares in London.
CityAM revealed earlier this year the Treasury and Financial Conduct Authority were set to hold talks with the UK’s fintech unicorns with improvements to London listing incentives playing a key role on the agenda.
People close to the Airtel and Sumup deals said the companies’ listings would be “helpful” in tempting other fintechs to market but were unlikely to move the needle in the short-term, with many of the bigger companies still looking towards 2028. They added there may still be a number of private equity-owned firms who could push ahead before then.
“We have this great pool of tech businesses that need to make the leap into the big league with a listing but London hasn’t been a great place for some of these firms, so it would be a great boost to see these IPOs flourish and could enhance London’s appeal and attract more listings,” Wilson added.
Sumup and Airtel declined to comment.