Reviews company Trustpilot plans to raise $50 million in a London IPO - handing the UK capital a tech listing

• Trustpilot has chosen London for its upcoming IPO, giving the UK capital a sizable tech listing.
• The reviews company is seeking to take advantage of a boom in online retailing and investor demand.
• Trustpilot is targeting a $1.4 billion valuation, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Online reviews company Trustpilot has announced plans to list on the London Stock Exchange and raise $50 million, giving the UK capital a sizable technology listing as it competes with New York and Amsterdam for initial public offerings.

Trustpilot is seeking to take advantage of both strong demand for tech companies from investors and a boom in online retailing driven by the pandemic.

The Copenhagen-based company has already been boosted by the surge in online retailing, with revenues jumping 25% in 2020 to $102 million, narrowing its pre-tax losses to $12.9 million. Around 121 million reviews had been submitted through Trustpilot by the end of 2020, while the company had close to 20,000 subscribers using its paid service.

Trustpilot hopes its stock-market debut will give it a valuation of around £1 billion ($1.4 billion), according to a person familiar with the matter.

"With ecommerce making it more difficult for consumers to know where to place their trust and for businesses to earn it, Trustpilot is well positioned to facilitate the growth of the trust economy for years to come," the company's chairman Timothy Weller said in the statement announcing the intended IPO.

Chief executive Peter Holten Mühlmann said: "Today is a significant landmark in our development. We believe that an IPO of the business will allow us to continue the momentum of recent years, providing a platform to deliver new products to more geographies, and succeed in our vision to become a universal symbol of trust."

Trustpilot's plan to IPO in London is a boost for the UK's main stock exchange, which has lost out in recent months to New York and Amsterdam when it comes to fashionable new listings.

New York has been at the centre of the boom in special-purpose acquisition companies - or SPACs - and is where the world's biggest tech stocks are traded. Amsterdam has also attracted SPACs and has taken a growing share of European stock trading after Brexit.

Trustpilot plans a free float of at least 25% of shares. An over-allotment option could make another 15% available.