Investors are expected to scrutinise whether Shein can justify the $40 billion to $50 billion valuation it is seeking in a Hong Kong initial public offering after a prospectus filed on Sunday showed slowing growth and a sharp decline in profitability. Revenue rose 8% to $41.8 billion in 2025, but net income fell 39% to $2.06 billion. In the first quarter of this year, the fast fashion retailer swung to a $99 million loss, the filing showed. While the quarterly loss partly reflected a $328 million fair-value charge on convertible redeemable preferred shares following an accounting change, slowing revenue growth and weaker core earnings underscore the company's mounting challenges.
"Institutional investors on the HKEX (Hong Kong Stock Exchange) will ... zero in on the 2.9% operating margin," said Winston Ma, executive director of the Global Public Investment Funds Forum and a former managing director at the China Investment Corporation.
