UK Fintech firm Wise is to switch its primary listing from London to New York in what was described yesterday as a "hammer blow" to the City, writes John-Paul Ford Rojas.

The decision to up sticks adds to a transatlantic exodus as companies seek higher valuations in the American stock market.

It deepens the sense of decline for London's beleaguered equity markets - hours after metal investment firm Cobalt axed plans for a UK flotation.

Wise boss Kristo Kaarmann acknowledged efforts to reform Britain's listing rules but said the move was due to the US having the world's biggest capital markets, enabling more investors to buy shares.

"We kind of have to accept the reality of where the world's capital is concentrated," he said.

The money transfer company said it was not turning its back on the UK, where a fifth of its employees are based, and would continue hiring and investing in the country.

It will also maintain a secondary listing in London.

But Charles Hall, head of research at broker Peel Hunt, said: "For Britain's leading fintech, founded in London, headquartered in London, to decide to turn its back on the London market can be seen as nothing but a hammer blow."

A leading City fund manager told the Daily Mail that it was a "devastating" setback to the London Stock Exchange, given hopes that Wise was on course to join the FTSE 100.

"There's the loss of prestige and substantial loss of tax revenue through stamp duty - but what message does it set for other successful fintech businesses in the UK?" he said.

"This is an area we should dominate."

Wise follows equipment hire group Ashtead, gambling giant Flutter, building materials firm CRH and plumber Ferguson in abandoning London.

At the same time, big FTSE names, from Hargreaves Lansdown to Deliveroo, have been snapped up by foreign predators.

And a dearth of new initial public offerings (IPO) means the departing companies are not being replaced, leaving London increasingly bereft.

The decision by Unilever to spin off its ice cream business in Amsterdam as well as fast fashion giant Shein's likely abandonment of a London IPO in favour of Hong Kong are among the latest blows.

Wise, founded in 2011 as TransferWise, listed under its new name in 2021 with an £8bn valuation, or 800p per share. The shares have had a rocky ride but were still a third up on Wise's debut valuation before yesterday's announcement.

That stoked a further rise of as much as 13pc, before the stock eventually closed 7.1pc, or 77p, higher at 1160p. The announcement came alongside results showing a 17pc rise in underlying profits to £282m for the year to the end of March.

Other major fintech firms including Klarna and Revolut also look set to favour New York. Klarna had already lined up a US IPO before shelving it earlier this year.