Ireland & France: Diageo to delist from Euronext Paris and Euronext Dublin

Guinness maker Diageo said on April 13 that it intended to submit applications for delisting its shares from Euronext Paris and Euronext Dublin, RTE reported.

The maker of Johnnie Walker whisky, Tanqueray gin and Don Julio tequila said in a statement that the decision followed a review of the company's trading volumes, costs and administrative requirements related to the listings.

The delisting from Euronext Paris is expected to take effect around May 26, while that from Euronext Dublin is expected to be around May 30.

Diageo, the world's biggest spirits company, said it will continue to list its shares on the London Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange.

It was reported last week that CRH, the largest company on the Irish stock market, plans to quit the Dublin stock exchange to ensure its inclusion in the influential S&P 500 index.

In March, the Dublin-based building materials giant said it intended to move its primary listing to the US.

There it is the largest building materials supplier and it made about 75% of its $5.6 billion in core earnings in that country last year.

Euronext Dublin had hoped CRH would retain its secondary listing in Ireland even as it advanced a plan to move its primary stock quotation from London to New York, the Irish Times reported.

The building materials giant will remain headquartered and tax resident in Ireland.

But its advisers think it would be easier for the S&P 500 committee to include the company in the benchmark index if it were not also listed in Dublin, which accounts for most of the trading volume in the stock.

The development would be another blow to the Euronext Dublin exchange, which has had only a small number of new admissions in recent years.

Flutter Entertainment has also indicated that it may list its shares in the US, prompting speculation that it could follow the moves of CRH and Diageo and quit the Dublin market.

13 April, 2023