ARM ponders quitting its listing on Nasdaq

The silicon chip designer ARM is considering abandoning its US share listing on the technology-led Nasdaq index because of the cost of being quoted on two separate exchanges.

Warren East, the chief executive of the FTSE 250 company, told a seminar at the CBI conference: "It is always a topic for discussion and we seek the views of our US shareholders all the time." He said the costs of a dual listing were 50 per cent greater than if ARM were only quoted on one market. Mr East said one of the effects of a US listing was ARM had the additional expense of quarterly reporting.

Although 40 per cent of ARM's shares are held by American investors, the vast bulk of trading in its stock by US shareholders is carried out through the London market, Mr East said. This was one reasons why it was considering giving up its Nasdaq listing.

ARM floated in 1998, becoming a FTSE 100 stock until the bursting of the technology bubble sent its shares crashing. Its market value is now £1.2bn.

Separately, Ken Rushton, the head of the UK Listing Authority at the Financial Services Authority, said it had several applications from overseas-quoted companies looking to shift their main listing to London. He said part of the attraction was that the UK's corporate governance standards increased their standing in their home countries.