Shawbrook has priced its shares at between 350p and 390p, giving the bank a market value ranging from £1.8bn to £2bn, making it the biggest initial public offering in London this year.    

The bank intends to list on 4 November after selling between 79.9 million and 81.1 million shares to raise £50m in cash. Around 18% of the lender will be held by the public. 

The specialist lender has said an IPO would allow it “access to a wider range of potential sources of capital,” which would “support its ambitious growth plans”.   

The bank, founded in 2011, offers mortgages for professional landlords, property investors, and individual homeowners with more complex income and credit profiles, as well as motor finance.  

It is backed by private equity groups BC Partners and Pollen Street Capital.  

Retail mortgages are largely run through its Bluestone Mortgages and The Mortgage Lender brands, which merged sales teams in April. 

It states that since 2011, it has grown its loan book from around £100m to £17bn as of 30 June.  

The group has a ‘30 by 30 target’, which means that it aims to boost its loan book to around £30bn by the end of 2030.  

The bank’s commercial arm, which includes real estate and small business lending, has a loan book currently at £10.5bn, accounting for 61% of its business.    

Its retail arm, which includes its retail mortgage brands and consumer finance, has a £6.6bn loan book, amounting to 39% of its lending.    

The move comes as London has struggled to attract new listings in recent years.  

Just £156m was raised from new listings on the LSE’s main and junior markets in the year to September, compared with £39bn raised by companies listing on the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq, according to data firm Dealogic. 

Shawbrook had reportedly attempted to float earlier this year, only for its plans to be shelved following market turmoil in April triggered by US President Donald Trump’s trade war. 

The bank was previously listed in London, but went private after a consortium led by BC Partners and Pollen Street Capital acquired the firm in 2017 in a deal valued at £861m.  

Elliot Reader, a director in the Houlihan Lokey fintech group, adds: “If executed well, Shawbrook’s IPO could help restore credibility to listings as a viable route for sponsors in a market that has seen a scarcity of public offerings in recent years.

“A successful float has the potential to re-energise London’s IPO pipeline, particularly for domestic-focused financial firms. While some peers, such as Monzo or Revolut, are reportedly weighing US or dual listings, Shawbrook could demonstrate that London remains a credible venue for high-profile financial IPOs. 

“Beyond the immediate market impact, the listing could also provide a useful valuation benchmark in the specialist banking and finance sector, which in recent years has seen far more take-private than public listing activity.”

Last month, broker network Mortgage Advice Bureau reiterated its intention, made in February, that it intends to move from the London Aim market to the FTSE 250 index next year.