The boss of the London Stock Exchange’s parent company is to urge Rachel Reeves to take fresh steps in the budget to incentivise as much as £100bn of additional investment by UK pension funds into the domestic stock market.
Sky News has learnt that a letter from David Schwimmer, the LSEG chief executive, has amassed more than 250 signatures from companies including pubs group Mitchells & Butlers, construction firm Kier and fresh food producer Bakkavor.
City sources said it was expected to be sent to the chancellor later on Thursday before being published by the end of the week.
Other companies which have agreed to sign the letter are understood to include Henry Boot, Peel Hunt, Integrafin and veterinary group CVS.
Mr Schwimmer’s letter is understood to call on Ms Reeves to incentivise a greater allocation from UK defined contribution pension funds to UK equities following a steep decline over the last decade.
A recent report by the thinktank New Financial suggested that allocating a minimum 25% of pension schemes’ default fund assets to UK investments across different asset classes could funnel between £50bn and £100bn into the UK market.
This, the report said, would still leave DC funds’ domestic allocation in line with their international peers and historical norms.
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The letter comes in the wake of a series of reforms initiated under the last government and taken forward by Ms Reeves in an attempt to bolster the UK stock market.
Last November, she unveiled what she described as “the biggest pension reform in decades” by outlining plans for the merger of scores of local authority retirement funds in an effort to save costs and fuel economic growth.
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An LSEG spokesperson declined to comment.
