The headline recommendation of Jonathan Hill's 2021 UK Listing Review was that dual-class shares structures be permitted on the London Stock Exchange's premium tier. The aspiration was to encourage more high-quality UK equity listings, particularly of high-growth tech-companies, for which dual-class shares are especially beneficial. Dual-class shares allow founders to list their companies, and retain majority-control, while holding significantly less of the cash-flow rights in the company. However, in the UK, dual-class shares are usually discussed in qualified terms, in an attempt to placate sceptical institutional shareholders. Using the UK Listing Review as a platform, this article explores the constraints commonly proposed to be attached to dual-class shares, and argues that, although it is important to protect public shareholders, constraints must not be too severe. A balance must be respected, otherwise UK initiatives to relax rules on dual-class shares could deter the very companies they are intended to attract.

There is a dearth of British tech-companies listing on the London Stock Exchange (LSE), and the LSE lacks a large, innovative tech-company such as Google. The UK Government, concerned as to the loss of UK tech-companies to foreign acquirors, views the encouragement of UK tech-firm listings as a policy priority. Dual-class stock, currently prohibited from the LSE Main Market's premium-tier, allows founders to list their firms, and retain majority-control, while holding significantly less of the cash-flow rights in the company. This article will broach the potential for dual-class stock to attract UK tech-company listings, and explore the benefits that dual-class stock can engender for UK tech-companies and their public shareholders. The risks of dual-class structures will also be discussed, but it will be shown that in a UK regulatory context, in relation to high-growth tech-companies, the risks may not be as severe as presumed, and easily moderated through judicious controls.