IPO Activity Halts Amid Tariff-Driven Market Chaos

Companies have reportedly put their initial public offering (IPO) plans on hold amid the market chaos caused by the announcements of new U.S. tariffs that began April 2.

Together with a slowdown in activity seen in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) market, preparations for IPOs of companies with a combined valuation of over $120 billion have been halted since April 1, the day before President Donald Trump’s first announcement of new tariffs, Bloomberg Businessweek reported Thursday (April 17).

Companies are rethinking both deals and IPOs, and advisers are recommending caution and flexibility while the market remains volatile, according to the report.

IPOs have been impacted especially hard, because they require companies to embark on a series tasks like public filings and marketing events in the time leading up to listing day, the report said.

“It’s week to week in terms of launch decisions,” Evan Riley, Americas head of equity capital markets at BNP Paribas SA, said in the report. “A lot is going to have to change for IPO activity to resume.”

It was reported April 4, two days after the first announcement of tariffs, that several technology and FinTech companies paused their activities related to IPOs.

Five companies that were in various stages of their IPO-related plans temporarily halted or rethought them, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported at the time.

Among them were buy now, pay later (BNPL) provider Klarna, ticketing marketplace StubHub, FinTech company Chime, virtual physical therapy company Hinge Health and crypto company Circle Internet Financial, according to the WSJ report.

Klarna took its IPO off the table three weeks after filing its paperwork with the Securities and Exchange Commission, PYMNTS reported April 4. At the time it paused its IPO, stocks within the BNPL space were being clobbered in the post-tariff announcement environment.

It was reported Tuesday that the mergers and acquisitions market has also been quiet as potential dealmakers try to get a sense of the Trump Administration’s stance on antitrust regulation.

Year to date, though Monday (April 21), the number of deals is down 19%, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing data from LSEG.

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