Human rights group urges UK financial regulator to block Shein’s LSE flotation

 Human rights group urges UK financial regulator to block Shein’s LSE flotation

 

 

A human rights group has urged Britain’s financial regulator to block the Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein’s planned blockbuster flotation on the London Stock Exchange.

Stop Uyghur Genocide, a UK-based human rights charity that alleges minority Uyghur people are being used as forced labour at some of Shein’s cotton suppliers in China’s north-western Xinjiang region, has begun a legal campaign against the planned stock market listing.

Represented by the law firm Leigh Day, the campaign group has written to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to argue that “any attempt by Shein to list on the LSE should be refused”.

The China-founded company, which was valued at $66bn (£52bn) in a fundraising round last year, began to explore a listing on the LSE early this year, and is expected to file a prospectus with the UK regulator soon. Shein abandoned its original plan to list in New York after opposition from US politicians.

Stop Shein listing on the FTSE, workers’ rights campaigners urge

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On Tuesday, Amnesty International UK said Shein’s potential London listing would be a “badge of shame” for the London market because of the fast-fashion firm’s “questionable” labour and human rights standards.

The fast-fashion retailer said on Wednesday: “Shein has a zero-tolerance policy for forced labour and we are committed to respecting human rights. We take visibility across our entire supply chain seriously and we require our contract manufacturers to only source cotton from approved regions.”