China-founded online fast fashion retailer Shein will make a public offering in London, British media report

Fast fashion retailer Shein, which thrives on a business model of selling inexpensive consumer goods made in China overseas, is expected to file an initial public offering (IPO) in London this week, according to British media reports.

Shein, founded by shy Chinese Sky entrepreneur Xu Yangtian, will file a confidential prospectus for the company to be listed on the London Stock Exchange, broadcaster Sky News said on Monday. The Financial Times also reported that Shein will make private submissions to regulators in the coming days.

While Shein, which competes with PDD Holdings’ Temu, is gaining popularity in the West, the company remains largely unnoticed in China. There are no records of any public appearances or interviews given by Xu.

According to its latest job postings, Shein serves consumers in “over 150 countries and regions” around the world. Its shopping site does not have a simplified Chinese version for mainland consumers.

Shein did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.

The Singapore-based company, which has hired Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley as financial advisers, is aiming to raise more than 1 billion pounds ($1.28 billion) from the initial public offering, which it estimates would value the company at around 50 billion pounds. News from heaven.

That would make Shein the most valuable unicorn to come out of China, after ByteDance, owner of short-video platforms TikTok and Douyin.

Shein has changed the IPO destination to London from New York amid tensions between the U.S. and China, executive chairman Donald Tang told the Financial Times last month. Although the company in 2021 changed its headquarters to Singapore from the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, “it wasn’t enough” to win over U.S. lawmakers, Tang was quoted as saying.

It is not immediately clear whether Shein’s overseas IPO filing would require approval from mainland regulators such as the Cyberspace Administration of China or the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC).

According to rules introduced last yearany company wishing to list overseas must register its intention with the CSRC and obtain approval from its own regulator if the majority of its employees are Chinese or live in China.

Local authorities in China are pinning their hopes on Shein to help boost exports.

Guangzhou’s Baiyun district is working to connect Shein with local clothing, leather and cosmetics exporters, according to a March news report published by Southern Metropolis Daily. A delegation from the Sanshui district in the neighboring city of Foshan visited Shein and recommended cosmetics and home appliance companies to open stores in Shein.