London’s IPO market could soon come motoring back, led by a bumper £5bn float from RAC as the roadside assistance firm defies market uncertainty to press ahead with its listing plans.
The West Midlands-based business, founded in 1897, has reportedly held preliminary meetings with prospective investors and fund managers, in the clearest sign yet that it could become a constituent of the London Stock Exchange before the end of the year.
The investor meetings, which were first reported by Bloomberg, come after reports RAC could fetch a valuation on the public markets of as much as £5bn, as private equity backers CVC Capital Partners and Silver Lake look to offload their stakes. That valuation would make it a candidate to join London’s premier FTSE 100 index.
If it goes ahead, the float would be the biggest to have graced the London markets in years, ending a months-long drought exacerbated by market turbulence following the outbreak of war in the Middle East.
Brokers still hope for 2026 IPO recovery
The London IPO market could still see a revival before the end of the year, according to City broker Peel Hunt, as a number of blue chip firms wait patiently for geopolitical tensions to die down before firing the starting gun on their own floats.
Brian Hanratty, head of equity capital markets at Peel Hunt, told City AM: “If you’d asked me a couple of months ago, actually the answer is still pretty similar now. This is the most constructive we’ve been on the UK IPO market in some time.
“And actually the pipeline is the best we have seen in a number of years. I think the pipeline was always going to be very H2 weighted. But those companies that were looking at Q2 are definitely taking a pause for now given recent market events and volatility.”
London saw a surge in IPOs at the back end of 2025, ending a two year-long drought, with the likes of British bank Shawbrook and tinned tuna giant Princes among the new entrants to the public markets.
But the recovery faltered following the outbreak of war in Iran, with concerns over the economic fallout putting IPO plans on ice for a number of potential candidates.
Not RAC’s first investor roadshow
RAC was previously owned by its members but was later bought by insurance giant Aviva for £1.1bn in 2005 – but Aviva later sold the firm to private equity business Carlyle in 2011.
Carlyle had initially planned a stock market float for RAC, but later reversed course and handed the breakdown cover business to new private equity owners in 2015.
In 2025, RAC reported a 7 per cent rise in sales to £840m, while core earnings rose 12 per cent to £329m.
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