UK capital market reform set to receive boost as Chancellor welcomes new Taskforce

• To support wider regulatory reform and position the UK Capital Markets for the next decades, a Capital Markets Industry Taskforce has been created and welcomed by the Chancellor
• The UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce comprises CEOs, Chairs and industry leaders representing private and publicly listed companies, asset owners and managers and the advisory services that support their access to capital and investments – representing the full end-to-end ecosystem of the public and private capital markets
• Taskforce aims to maximise the impact of capital market reforms, ensuring the UK is the place where great companies can start, grow, scale and stay and to ensure our investors have access to assets that provide returns and support the real economy in which they live and work
• The Taskforce will be chaired by Julia Hoggett, CEO of London Stock Exchange plc

London Stock Exchange plc, an LSEG business, announces the launch of a new UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce, convened with participants across the financial markets ecosystem to drive forward the development of the UK’s capital markets. Capital markets are often not discussed in the UK through the lens of their ultimate purpose: to direct capital into the real economy to create the jobs and innovation that have an impact on all our lives, and to help savers, pensioners and policy holders find assets to invest for life events and their retirement. Given their critical role, it is essential that capital markets work effectively. The UK has a superb start-up ecosystem, with world leading universities, a unicorn being created on average every 27 days and world leading fintech and life sciences sectors – among many others. And yet, not all of those great companies reach the scale they need or secure financing in the UK. 

Addressing this challenge is a vision underpinning much of the regulatory reform currently being undertaken in the UK – including through the Kalifa Review and the Hill Review. However, not all the change required to ensure the UK has the growth and productivity gains it seeks will come from regulatory reforms alone. It also needs to come from the full end-to-end ecosystem of the UK capital markets working to implement and embed those changes and indeed in some places re-evaluate and challenge how parts of our markets currently operate and where further change is required. 

There is great consensus around the need for this change and positive momentum behind it and that is why a group of industry leaders who are users of the capital markets have come together in support of these efforts. 

The Taskforce’s objectives will be to stimulate industry engagement to ensure that the UK’s capital markets serve those who seek capital and those who have capital to invest; that they support the UK economy; and strengthen its role as a global financial centre. Taskforce members will convene sub-groups, deliberately drawing from a wide range of industry, academia and civil society, on specific areas where change is needed to ensure an inclusive and thorough debate. The Taskforce will also consider how the ecosystem can evolve and support the current and potential future regulatory change to ensure the focus on implementing reform continues and is effectively embedded. 

Julia Hoggett, CEO of the London Stock Exchange plc, will Chair the new Taskforce. It will comprise CEOs, Chairs and industry leaders representing private and publicly listed companies, asset owners and managers and the advisory services that support their access to capital and investments – representing the full end-to-end ecosystem of the public and private capital markets. 

The inaugural Taskforce members are below:

• Exchange: Julia Hoggett, CEO, LSE plc (Chair)
• Lawyer: Mark Austin, Corporate Partner, Freshfields, Chair of UK Secondary Capital Raising Review and Listing Authority Advisory Panel Chair
• Corporate and Investment Bank: Katharine Braddick, Group Head of Strategic Policy and Advisor to the Group CEO, Barclays Plc
• Asset Manager: Peter Harrison, CEO, Schroders
• Venture Capital Investor: Klaus Hommels, VC and Lakestar Founder
• Pension Funds/Insurer: Nicholas Lyons, Chairman, Phoenix Group
• Private Company CEO: Matthew Scullion, CEO and Founder, Matillion
• Advisory/Audit/Accountancy: Dr Kay Swinburne, Vice Chair of Financial Services at KPMG UK
• Listed Company Chair: Sir Jonathan Symonds, Chairman, GSK Plc

Julia Hoggett, CEO, LSE plc, and Inaugural Chair of the UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce, said:
“Strengthening our financial ecosystem and thereby improving the competitiveness of the UK capital markets is a continuous task. It is vital to ensure the UK capital markets continue to provide efficient access to capital, which enables businesses to start, grow, scale and stay here, and provide all savers and investors with access to the best possible assets, generating the best possible growth potential. 

“I am honoured to Chair the UK Capital Markets Industry Taskforce. This is a great opportunity to work with senior practitioners across the financial markets to build on the momentum of the UK market reviews and reforms, and ensure our markets are right for future generations.” 

Nicholas Lyons, Chairman of Phoenix Group said:
“This new taskforce will play an important role in effecting the change needed to further develop the UK’s thriving ecosystem for high growth companies, while enabling those investing for the long term, such as pension savers, to benefit from the potential of this important asset class. I look forward to working with other members to drive momentum behind reforms of our capital markets to enable the UK to remain a leading global financial centre supporting efficient access to capital.” 

Matthew Scullion, CEO and Founder, Matillion said:
“The UK has made enormous progress in becoming one of the best places in the world to found a high growth company. Recent reforms bring further opportunities to create world leading companies in high growth sectors but if the UK is to create the next Apple or Alphabet, we need an ecosystem which allows companies to be scaled from the UK. I am delighted to join this Taskforce which aims to do just that, ensuring companies can access the capital and support they need at every stage to scale globally whilst calling the UK their home.”

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