Blow to London as constructing agency set to delist blaming regulation and better prices

Building materials supplier CRH will delist from the London Stock Exchange, blaming higher costs and regulatory requirements, in a further blow to the City.

The Dublin-headquartered company announced plans to delist in London two and a half years after it switched its main listing to the New York Stock Exchange.

CRH said it had ‘carefully considered, among other factors, the level of trading activity for its ordinary shares on the LSE’.

It also pointed to the ‘additional cost, regulatory and administrative obligations arising from retaining the LSE listings.’

CRH will also cancel its preference shares, which investors will vote on at May’s annual general meeting. 

This includes the 7 per cent preference shares listed in London and the 5 per cent preference shares listed on Euronext Growth Dublin, which have a value of approximately €1.2 million (£1.04bn). 

It marks another blow for London, which has been criticised for failing to attract and retain listings. A slew of companies have ditched their primary listings in the UK, including Paddy Power owner Flutter and mining giant BHP. 

Meanwhile, the market has seen a flurry of deal-making, prompting an exodus of big names as they are either taken private or list elsewhere.

CRH will delist from the LSE on 20 April, after which its ordinary shares will be solely listed in New York.

The building materials firm switched its main listing to New York in September 2023, saying it would bring ‘increased commercial, operational and acquisition opportunities’ for the firm. 

AJ Bell’s investment director Russ Mould said: ‘The development, though not seismic, is another sign of London’s diminished status in the roster of global markets. Companies who switch their main listing to the US often pledge to keep a presence in London, but CRH’s actions suggest that is no longer a given.’