IPO delays continue as 87% of UK’s fast-growing companies delay IPO in current market conditions – London Business News

Even with today’s economic volatility, inadequate financial systems and processes are preventing global companies from growing at scale, according to a new study by Coupa Software, a leader in business spend management (BSM).

Nearly three in four (72%) high-growth companies recognize that their financial processes are not robust and scalable enough to support growth plans. Coupled with concerns about currently rising interest rates (according to 32% of companies), supply chain bottlenecks (30%), stock market volatility (30%) and inflation (29%), these companies are curbing their growth plans and delaying IPOs (78%).

“High growth and pre-IPO periods are major stress tests for any company,” said Tony Tiscornia, Coupa’s chief financial officer. “An uncertain market environment like the one we’re experiencing now doesn’t help either. Finance teams can be the anchor in these storms, providing real-time visibility to facilitate management decisions, as well as developing processes and implementing technology to support the journey ahead.”

Manual processes cause slowdowns; the case for digitization

Companies aiming for high growth need a clear picture of their cash position and audit compliance. This is true for companies considering an IPO and for companies that are more focused on margins amid mounting macroeconomic pressures. But data suggests manual processes and siled data are holding companies back:

• 60% have manual processes for procurement, 56% for supplier management, 56% for cash management, 47% for invoicing and 40% for payments.
• Only 38% can accurately identify the company’s cash on hand, 75% need to log into multiple systems to do so, and 42% said it could take at least several days to retrieve the required information.
• Almost two-thirds are not entirely confident they can produce auditable financial information or quarterly auditable reports for markets (60%) for at least the last 2-3 years (62%).

Finance leaders are trying to improve readiness in the last mile

Finance teams are looking for improvements to scale finance processes to support their organization’s growth ambitions, including:

• 85% want to improve risk management processes and controls to mitigate financial risks that could hinder growth.
• 70% are still building their team of seasoned finance professionals.
• 67% want to improve financial controls to protect future shareholders and prevent embezzlement.

“Regardless of a company’s growth plans, whether scaling for an IPO, mergers and acquisitions, or raising venture capital, a comprehensive approach to business expense management provides a single source of truth that empowers finance teams with complete financial visibility and control.

“For companies that have delayed an IPO, now is the right time to digitize back office functions. Not only will this increase confidence in financial operations and compliance before they are ready for listing, but it will also reduce the burden of increased scrutiny once they are released,” continued Tiscornia.