In a recent nationwide survey of over 200 law firm partners, 31% stated that their firm is actively considering a stock market listing in the next 12-18 months with a further 44% saying an IPO was under consideration.
Coupled with this, 78% of law firm partners said their firms were either in active discussions or considering whether to pursue a credit facility indicating that there is greater demand than ever before from partners at UK firms to seek external capital to complement their own equity.
Ambitious plans for growth are the catalyst for this sentiment change, with more than 50% of those surveyed saying the pandemic had presented new growth opportunities to expand existing practice areas or develop new business lines with several firms acquiring talented teams to spearhead growth.
Many law firm partners felt that adopting innovative practices was key to accelerating growth or maintaining market position, with 80% of respondents observing that senior leadership teams should incorporate innovation in the firm’s post pandemic strategies.
Whilst 86% of respondents highlighted some continued downward pressure from clients on costs for certain services, innovation and attracting external investment are expected to counteract this pressure and to meet the growth agenda.
Ellora MacPherson, Chief Investment Officer at Harbour said: “This survey shows a real desire by firms to access external finance to support their growth ambitions. IPOs are one way of doing this but won’t be the best fit for all firms. The survey reveals an expanding appetite amongst firms to source credit facilities from established litigation funders.”
The survey results have been published in City AM, The Global Legal Post, The Litigation Finance Journal and Investors Chronicle.
If you would like to discuss the results or would like to understand how Harbour can assist law firms with external finance, please email Maurice MacSweeney.
