The 48-Hour IPO: How Banks Are Rewriting the Rules of Going Public in Europe

Feb 8, 2026 - 14:00

Geopolitical shocks and vanishing market windows are forcing Europe’s top underwriters to compress IPO timelines from weeks to days — and it’s reshaping how the continent’s biggest listings get done.

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Why are banks speeding up European IPOs? Because volatile markets now close faster than deals can price. After European IPO volume dropped 20% in 2025 and multiple high-profile listings were pulled at the last minute, investment banks are compressing roadshows from two weeks to under a week — and in some cases using accelerated bookbuilds that complete within 48 hours. With a massive pipeline of private equity-backed companies now pushing for exits, and regulatory reforms like the EU Listing Act cutting red tape, 2026 is shaping up to be the fastest European IPO market in history. The trade-off: less time for price discovery means higher stakes for getting valuations right.

Europe’s IPO Machine Is Getting a Turbo Upgrade

Investment banks across Europe are fundamentally rethinking how they bring companies to market. Faced with geopolitical volatility, shifting tariff regimes and market windows that can slam shut overnight, the continent’s leading underwriters are compressing IPO timelines to levels that would have been unthinkable just five years ago. The goal is simple: get deals priced and allocated before external shocks can derail them.

A 20% Drop That Changed Everything

The shift is being driven by hard-won experience. In 2025, European IPO volume dropped 20% to 105 deals, with proceeds falling 10% year-on-year to $17.3 billion, even as US listings surged. Market windows opened and closed abruptly throughout the year, punishing issuers and their advisors who moved too slowly. Companies that had spent months preparing roadshows found themselves pulling deals at the last minute as volatility spiked on tariff announcements, AI valuation swings and monetary policy surprises.

Banks Are Rewriting the 2026 Playbook

Now, heading into what many expect to be a significantly stronger 2026, banks are applying the lessons learned. According to Cleary Gottlieb’s annual IPO review, banks anticipate a strong start for European IPOs this year, with active pipelines building across defence, industrials, financials and technology. But the operative word is “speed.” Accelerated bookbuilding processes, shorter roadshow windows and pre-marketing strategies are all being deployed to reduce the time between launch and pricing.

The New Playbook: Speed as Risk Management

Traditionally, a European IPO roadshow would run for two weeks or more, with management teams crisscrossing financial centres from London to Frankfurt to Zurich. That model is being compressed into five to seven days in many cases, with some deals using accelerated bookbuilds that complete within 48 hours. The logic is straightforward: every additional day a deal remains open is another day for an external shock to crater investor sentiment.

As EY’s Global IPO Trends report noted, agility became a “defining differentiator” for IPO candidates in 2025. Leading issuers adjusted timelines, refined equity stories and explored multiple pathways to capital, readying themselves for rapidly shifting market windows. That emphasis on adaptability is expected to intensify in 2026. Companies that invest early in readiness will be best positioned to seize fleeting market opportunities as they arise.

Morgan Stanley’s Global Co-Head of Equity Capital Markets, Eddie Molloy, put it bluntly: “When markets are volatile, it’s important to stay front-footed, nimble and proactive.” The bank expects European IPO activity to accelerate materially through 2026, particularly as private equity sponsors push for exits in a favourable macro environment.

Private Equity Is Forcing the Pace

A critical driver behind the acceleration is the sheer volume of private equity-backed companies that need to exit. After years of holding portfolio companies through unfavourable market conditions, sponsors are under increasing pressure from limited partners to return capital. Dual-track processes — where companies simultaneously prepare for both an IPO and a trade sale — are expected to increase significantly this year.

The pipeline is substantial. Verisure, the Swiss-based alarm systems provider backed by Hellman & Friedman, has already selected banks for a European IPO that could value the company at between €20 billion and €30 billion. Visma, the Norwegian software group owned by Hg Capital, is eyeing what could be one of the year’s largest listings. Portuguese lender Novobanco is preparing for a float that could come as soon as the second quarter. In fintech, Revolut’s secondary share sale at a $75 billion valuation and Monzo’s hiring of Morgan Stanley to advise on a potential £6–7 billion listing both signal that the UK’s biggest tech IPOs in years could land in 2026.

Regulatory Tailwinds Help

The EU Listing Act, which takes full effect this year, is expected to reduce compliance burdens and streamline the path to public markets. Adjustments to ESG reporting frameworks may further simplify the process. In the UK, the Financial Conduct Authority’s overhaul of listing rules — designed to simplify requirements and give greater executive control to London-listed companies — is already encouraging issuers to consider a domestic float over rival exchanges.

These regulatory changes matter because they shave weeks off the preparation timeline. When banks are already compressing roadshows and bookbuilding, every reduction in regulatory friction compounds the speed advantage. The result is a European IPO market that is becoming structurally faster and more responsive to market conditions.

The Risks of Going Too Fast

Speed, of course, carries its own dangers. Compressed timelines mean less time for price discovery, which can lead to underpricing that leaves money on the table, or overpricing that damages aftermarket performance and poisons the well for future issuers. The Klarna IPO on the NYSE in late 2025 — which priced at roughly $15 billion, a far cry from its 2021 peak — demonstrated that public markets now demand rigorous valuation discipline. Investors will punish issuers who rush to market without a credible equity story.

Geopolitical risk remains the elephant in the room. Trade tensions, renewed tariff threats and the unresolved question of European defence spending could all trigger the kind of sudden market dislocations that make compressed timelines a liability rather than an asset. As S&P Global’s banking risk outlook cautioned, the financial world is operating against a backdrop of extreme global indebtedness, and European banks are concentrating a growing share of potential vulnerabilities.

What It Means for 2026

The direction of travel is clear. European investment banks have concluded that the traditional, leisurely IPO process is no longer fit for purpose in a world where market sentiment can reverse in hours. Speed is now a core component of risk management, not just a convenience.

For companies considering a listing, the message is equally clear: be ready before the window opens. That means having audited financials, a tight equity story, a well-rehearsed management team and legal documentation substantially complete before engaging underwriters. The companies that treat IPO readiness as an ongoing discipline rather than a last-minute scramble will be the ones that capture the best windows and the strongest valuations.

If 2025 taught European capital markets anything, it is that hesitation is expensive and patience is no longer a virtue. In 2026, the banks that move fastest will win the mandates — and the issuers who are prepared to match that pace will reap the rewards.