Just Eat Takeaway.com has declared its intention to delist from the London Stock Exchange, citing the administrative burden of maintaining a dual listing. The merger in 2020 between London's Just Eat and Amsterdam's Takeaway.com initially intended to end the Dutch listing.
However, after dropping its US listing in 2022, the company chose to maintain listings in both London and Amsterdam. Now, it plans to terminate its London listing as well, as reported by .
"The company has recommenced and continued its review to determine optimal listing venues," Just Eat informed shareholders today. "As part of this review, the company has considered, amongst other things, the liquidity and trading volumes, as well as cost and administrative requirements related to its primary listing in Amsterdam and secondary listing in London."
The firm pointed out the significant costs, administrative complexity, and stringent disclosure and regulatory demands associated with keeping up a London listing, alongside the low liquidity and trading volumes of its shares.
Post-merger, Just Eat was removed from the FTSE 100 in 2021 due to its reclassification as a non-º£½ÇÊÓƵ entity. This latest move is likely to be perceived as a setback for the º£½ÇÊÓƵ government and the Financial Conduct Authority, which have been striving to enhance the listing regime to rejuvenate the stock market.
Just Eat's share price has taken a significant hit since the company's merger, with a steep decline throughout 2021 and 2022, failing to make a full recovery. The stock is down 84 per cent since February 2020.
The delisting from the London Stock Exchange (LSE) will take effect on 27 December, with trading ceasing on 24 December. "As the company is assigned to the equity shares international commercial companies secondary listing category of the official list of the FCA, no shareholder approval is required for the LSE delisting," the firm noted.
A Just Eat spokesperson conveyed to City AM: "As we deliver our strategy to accelerate growth, we have been looking at enhancing efficiencies and made the decision to delist from our secondary listing venue on the London Stock Exchange," They added, "The majority of our trading volumes happen at our primary listing venue on the Euronext Amsterdam."
The spokesperson also emphasised the importance of the º£½ÇÊÓƵ market, stating, "The º£½ÇÊÓƵ continues to be a key market for us, home to many of our talented colleagues and our ever-expanding range of grocery and restaurant partnerships. With our network now covering 97 per cent of the º£½ÇÊÓƵ population, we remain committed to continuing our investment and cementing our leadership position in the country."
