Is Shein really worth £50bn? Reasons to be sceptical are

Shein failed to list in the US and now the EU is planning customs duties that may dent its business model

EU plans for import duty on cheap goods could dent Shein and Temu

A stock market listing for Shein has been talked about for so long that the round number of £50bn has become attached to this Chinese-founded fast-fashion retailer as a plausible valuation. It’s probably time to ask: are you sure about that number?

The figure isn’t plucked out of thin air, it should be said. Shein raised money from private equity backers last year at a valuation of $66bn, which is roughly £50bn. But, since the company also raised a few dollars at a $100bn valuation the previous year, it has merely demonstrated the standard truth that valuations set in thin private markets can be volatile and are not to be relied upon. Translating a sketchy private number into a hard valuation on a serious public market is a different game.