British start-up attacks London stock market as it reveals plan to delist

London: A British car battery company, DG Innovate, is making waves by quitting the London stock market. This comes just weeks after they raised £500,000 from investors. The firm, led by former Tesla director Peter Bardenfleth-Hanse, is frustrated with the lack of support for start-ups in the city. They feel that the red tape around stock listings is making it tough to raise funds and grow.

Despite the challenges, DG Innovate had secured £500,000 in early December, which they claimed would keep them afloat until February 2025. They also raised an additional £100,000 back in September. Once they complete the delisting in early 2025, they plan to offer a way for current investors to trade their shares privately.

Bardenfleth-Hanse, along with other ex-Tesla executives, took the helm of DG Innovate in December 2023. Shareholders include Christian Eidem, a former adviser to Elon Musk, who owns a significant stake, and Norway’s largest bank, DNB. After announcing their delisting plans, the company noted a persistent lack of interest from UK institutional investors in firms like theirs.

DGI’s shares plummeted by 75% after the news, dropping the company’s value from £12 million to just £2.8 million. While DGI is a small player, this move is seen as a setback for the London stock market, which has historically been a launchpad for small businesses seeking growth.

The London Stock Exchange has faced challenges, with three years of outflows from UK equity funds leaving smaller firms struggling for support. The recent changes to listing rules were meant to ease the process, but ironically, DGI used these changes to push through their delisting without needing shareholder approval.

Based in Wales, DG Innovate is working on developing sodium-based batteries as a more sustainable alternative to the widely used lithium batteries in electric vehicles.