US IPO Bankers Keep Fees Flowing, Surpassing Last Year Despite Shutdown

Fees tied to underwriting U.S. IPOs, equity offerings, and convertible bond sales have already exceeded last year’s totals even after tariff concerns and a federal government shutdown temporarily slowed activity across capital markets. With several weeks still remaining in 2025, U.S.-listed companies have generated $8.78 billion in fees from stock and convertible issuance through Dec. 2, surpassing the $8.06 billion recorded for all of 2024, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group Plc.

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A record-setting year for convertible bond issuance and a rejuvenated IPO market fueled in part by a wave of blank-check company listings played a central role in the rebound.

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Still, the environment hasn’t been without obstacles. The back-and-forth over tariffs, combined with a government shutdown that temporarily froze certain functions of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, likely eliminated roughly one-quarter of the year’s available dealmaking window, said Mangesh Ghogre, founder of New York-based One Capita Advisors and former head of equity capital markets at Nomura’s India business.

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“With fewer windows available, the car, so to speak, was running on three tires this year,” Ghogre said.

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What did push activity forward was the powerful combination of elevated interest rates, surging equity valuations, and unusually high single-stock volatility. Those conditions made convertible debt particularly appealing to companies seeking to raise capital at the lowest possible cost. The product became the fastest-growing segment within equity capital markets, producing $2.38 billion in fees a 46% increase compared with 2024.

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This momentum was driven by nine major single- or dual-tranche offerings that each raised more than $2 billion. Leading the pack were multi-part transactions from Nebius Group NV, an artificial-intelligence data center operator, and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase Global Inc., both of which tapped strong investor demand.

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The IPO market also contributed meaningfully to the rebound. From June through September, conditions were ideal for issuance, helping banks pull in $2.45 billion in fees from U.S.-listed initial public offerings. That represents an almost 13% gain from last year, based on LSEG data. Notable debutants included LNG exporter Venture Global Inc., payments specialist Klarna Group Plc, and AI-infrastructure provider CoreWeave Inc.

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As is typical, the largest share of fees for ECM divisions came from follow-on equity offerings by companies already trading publicly. These share sales generated $3.94 billion in fees about 7% below last year’s level as periods of market uncertainty made it tougher for issuers to choose the optimal moment to transact.

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This year’s largest equity offering came in February, when Toronto-Dominion Bank reduced its stake in Charles Schwab Corp. through a $13.1 billion sell-down. That deal far exceeded June’s $4.4 billion stock sale by insurance brokerage Brown & Brown Inc., the second-largest transaction of the year.

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Across all ECM categories, the financial sector  which includes SPAC IPOs and the technology industry generated the highest fee totals. Health care, last year’s most active sector, lagged this time as policy debates in Washington created a cloud of uncertainty and slowed issuance across the space.

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Despite the moderate year-over-year improvement, 2025’s fee haul remains subdued compared with the boom days of 2021, when ultra-low rates and abundant liquidity helped push ECM fees to a massive $20.4 billion. This year’s tally is also below the 10-year average of $9.41 billion, LSEG data show.

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Even so, bankers are approaching 2026 with renewed optimism. The temporary delay caused by the government shutdown is expected to create pent-up demand, and many dealmakers believe next year’s fee pool as well as overall issuance could surpass 2025’s totals. Expectations for interest rate cuts are adding to the positive sentiment.

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“The highway could turn into a runway in 2026 given expected interest rate cuts and assuming the full year will be available,” Ghogre said.

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