Major concerns from senior MP over £50bn Shein list

A senior MP has raised “deep concerns” with City regulators about a lack of transparency from Shein ahead of the Chinese fast-fashion giant’s potential £50 billion listing on the London stock market.

Liam Byrne, chairman of the Business Select Committee, wrote to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the London Stock Exchange to ask how they will scrutinize the company as it plans one of Britain’s largest ever flotations.

Shein is awaiting approval for its £50 billion London listing, but campaigners have complained about allegations of supply chain abuse.

MPs were furious this week after the fast fashion giant’s top British lawyer refused to say whether its cheap clothes are linked to slave labor in China’s Xinjiang region.

In a letter to Dame Julia Hoggett, chief executive of the London stock exchange, Byrne said his committee was “deeply concerned by the lack of frank and open answers to some extremely simple, fundamental questions about the integrity of Shein’s supply chain.”

He asked Hoggett to respond with “what controls, if any, the London Stock Exchange has put in place to authenticate statements made by companies seeking to list on the stock exchange, with particular reference to their safeguards against the use of forced labor in their products.”

Byrne has also asked FCA boss Nikhil Rathi to explain the checks the watchdog is carrying out to ‘ensure all legal risks are disclosed’. There are concerns that Shein is not fully transparent with regulators about its supply chain. Chancellor Rachel Reeves is in China for talks on economic and financial cooperation that could help Shein win regulatory approvals.

Also on the trip are Rathi and David Schwimmer, boss of the London Stock Exchange Group which owns the LSE.

During this week’s hearing with MPs, Shein lawyer Yinan Zhu was accused of being “disrespectful” and “ridiculous” after she refused to comment on whether the company believes slavery is taking place in the region.

Chinese authorities deny claims that they have set up labor camps for Uyghurs – the largest ethnic minority group in Xinjiang – and other Muslim minority groups. Campaigners have said they are concerned that Shein’s suppliers are likely to use materials made in such camps. Shein emphasizes that the country takes a “zero tolerance” approach to forced labor.