Pershing Square Holdings, the only hedge fund in the FTSE 100, may be set to move its listing to New York, reports have suggested.
Pershing CEO Bill Ackman recently raised the possibility in a private meeting, The Times reported, having considered the move since June 2022.
The company is already dual-listed in London and Amsterdam.
Last week, it was revealed that Pershing Square's fund was down almost 9% throughout 2022, its worst result since 2016, despite reaping $2.7bn on interest rate trades throughout the year.
However, its share price had fallen 14.6% throughout the year, further widening the 33% discount that the hedge fund sits at relative to net assets.
In a private meeting, Ackman reportedly floated the idea of leaving London, suggesting that the move would better allow the CEO to market Pershing shares to American investors.
However, in an interview with The Times over the weekend, Ackman said that a move to the US "is not my first choice".
"I would hate to pack up and go — but if you are sufficiently unloved in a relationship, that is the right thing to do," he said.
Pershing is currently dual-listed in both London and Amsterdam, but Ackman suggested last year that it could gain a US listing by obtaining controlling ownership of one of its US operating businesses.
"The ultimate solution is potentially seen as migrating the listing to the US," wrote Matthew Hose, an analyst with Jefferies who reportedly attended the meeting in London.
"It would likely offer a very good chance of materially narrowing the discount, given the nexus for the fund and manager has always been the US anyway," he added.
