Arm to Skip ‘Lead-Left’ in Upcoming IPO and Instead Have Four Equal Banks

  • Barclays, Goldman, JPMorgan and Mizuho to be paid same fees
  • Chipmaker’s planned IPO expected to be among tech’s Top 5

Billionaire Masayoshi Son, chairman and chief executive officer of SoftBank

Photographer: Akio Kon
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Arm Ltd., taking a page from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s landmark listing almost a decade ago, will split underwriter fees evenly among the four banks leading its initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter.

That’s a departure from how companies usually plan their IPOs, where banks vie for the lead-left spot for the chance to rake in the biggest share of fees. Barclays Plc, Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Mizuho Financial Group are set to be listed in Arm’s prospectus when it’s filed publicly this month, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private information.