The failure of small British Initial Public Offerings on the UK Alternative Investment Market: A research note on spatial and industry effects

Abstract

This research note investigates the failure probability of British Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) on the Alternative Investment Market (AIM) in terms of spatial proximity to London and operating within the financial services sector. The results suggest that financial services firms in proximity to London experience a higher failure rate on AIM. It is suggested that part of the higher failure rate observed on AIM, compared to the failure rate of small IPOs elsewhere, can be explained by the London dominance of AIM, which favours those financial sector businesses that manage to achieve an IPO.