\n
![](\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/img-assets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/GettyImages-2158469156-e1719332977924.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/p>\n [ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
Shein, the Chinese-linked $64 billion fast-fashion giant monopolizing teens\u2019 wallets, filed for a long-awaited<\/a> IPO listing on London\u2019s Stock Exchange earlier this month. And, in typical Shein fashion<\/a>, the company filed confidentially, to avoid the scrutiny that U.S. regulators demanded after reports<\/a> of the company\u2019s forced labor practices.\u00a0<\/p>\n A spokesperson from Shein <\/em>declined to comment on the matter.<\/p>\n Confidential IPO filings aren\u2019t unusual. In fact, the vast majority of companies choose to file confidentially in order to fend off lawsuits<\/a> from competitors. However, Shein has shown an unusual commitment to secrecy; the company has not responded to the SEC\u2019s offer to file publicly with the New York Stock Exchange, dropping a massive market opportunity<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n The NYSE asked Shein to make its filing public after political figures pressured the company on their alleged human-rights abuses and exploitation of trade loopholes. Investigators have accused<\/a> Shein of forcing workers to work 16-hour days, withholding wages, and utilizing child labor, some of which the Singapore-based company has admitted to. Additionally, congressmen have accused<\/a> Shein of sourcing forced-labor from Uyghur Muslims to make the companies\u2019 $3 T-shirts and $10 jeans.\u00a0<\/p>\n Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who advocated against allowing Shein to file in the U.S., recently wrote to United Kingdom Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, warning him to not allow Shein\u2019s listing.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI now feel a duty of friendship to repeat these warnings and urge caution before the United Kingdom allows Shein to list in London,\u201d Rubio wrote<\/a>. \u201cSlave labor, sweatshops, and trade tricks are the dirty secrets behind Shein\u2019s success.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n However, it appears unlikely Hunt will listen. Shein will be better received in London, which is seeking to add some high-profile IPOs to its faltering stock exchange post-Brexit. The LSE raised a meager $1 billion last year, the lowest level in decades<\/a>, according to Bloomberg<\/em>. <\/strong>By comparison, IPOs on the Nasdaq<\/a> and New York Stock Exchange raised a total of $24.1 billion last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Shein IPO news comes during the heat of Britain\u2019s general election cycle<\/a>. Many pollsters expect<\/a> the Labour party to triump over the conservatives on July 4, ending the Tories 14-year reign.\u00a0<\/p>\n Labour party members have courted Shein, even as other members express their dismay. The Labour party met with<\/a> the fast-fashion manufacturer earlier this month after news first broke of Shein\u2019s potential London listing.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cLabour has met a range of companies including Shein that are looking to invest or list in Britain,\u201d a spokesperson for the opposition party told Reuters<\/em>. \u201cRaising investment, productivity, and growth is one of Labour\u2019s missions for government.\u201d<\/p>\n\n