Simmons and HSF Kramer advise on London’s largest mining IPO since 2018

Simmons & Simmons and HSF Kramer have advised on Spanish miner Abenójar Tungsten’s £142.5 million London IPO, the capital’s largest mining flotation since 2018 by proceeds.

The company joined the London Stock Exchange’s Main Market on 30 October with a market capitalisation of approximately £522.2 million at the offer price. The flotation ranks as London’s third-largest IPO of 2026.

Simmons advised Abenójar, with a team led by London corporate partner Alexander Keepin and Madrid corporate counsel Daniel Vázquez.

HSF Kramer advised a banking syndicate with a team led by London corporate Sarah Ries-Coward, along with London-based US securities partner Tom O'Neill.

"This was the first Spanish company to undertake an IPO on London’s Main Market without a dual listing," Keepin told Non-Billable. Adding: "The challenges centred on settlement and marrying Spanish legal requirements with the London listing process. That was a substantial piece of work."

Market momentum?

Abenójar’s October float brings the number of Main Market IPOs and new-issue listings this year to just five.

The LSE’s Main Market recorded no new listings in the third quarter, the first such quarter in at least a decade, according to EY data.

Activity picked up in October, with both Airtel Money and Abenójar joining the market. Airtel Money’s £529 million offering valued the business at £5.3 billion, making it the largest company to complete a London IPO since 2021.

Ringing the bell

With the LSE bringing back the iconic trading bell on 27 October for the first time since 1986, Abenójar’s IPO was the first to be marked with a ceremonial bell ringing in 40 years. The firm's CEO Gonzalo García San Miguel did the honours."That was rather special," Keepin said.

The firms behind London's two biggest IPOs

The two largest London offerings this year have been Airtel Money and Uzbekistan’s National Investment Fund, UzNIF.

A&O Shearman advised Airtel Money on its £529.2 million IPO, which valued the company at approximately £5.3 billion. HSF Kramer acted for majority shareholder Airtel Africa, while Gibson Dunn advised the underwriters.

Cleary and Uzbekistani firm Kosta Legal advised UzNIF and its selling shareholder on its roughly $604 million IPO, which valued the fund at $1.95 billion. White & Case and Dentons advised the banks on the dual London and Tashkent listing.