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RISK FACTORS

Investing in our ordinary shares involves a high degree of risk. Risks associated with an investment in our ordinary shares include, but are not limited to, the risk factors described below. If any of the risks described below actually occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In such case, the trading price of our ordinary shares could decline and you may lose all or part of your investment. You should carefully consider all the information in this prospectus, including the risks and uncertainties described below as well as our Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus, before making an investment decision.

Risks Related to Our Business

The success of our business is significantly related to general economic conditions and, accordingly, our business, operations and financial condition could be adversely affected by economic slowdowns, liquidity crises, fiscal or political uncertainty and possible subsequent downturns in commercial real estate asset values, property sales and leasing activities in one or more of the geographies or industry sectors that we or our clients serve.

Periods of economic weakness or recession, significantly rising interest rates, fiscal or political uncertainty, market volatility, declining employment levels, declining demand for commercial real estate, falling real estate values, disruption to the global capital or credit markets or the public perception that any of these events may occur may negatively affect the performance of some or all of our service lines.

Our results of operations are significantly impacted by economic trends, government policies and the global and regional real estate markets. These include the following: overall economic activity, changes in interest rates, the impact of tax and regulatory policies, the cost and availability of credit and the geopolitical environment.

Adverse economic conditions or political or regulatory uncertainty could also lead to a decline in property sales prices as well as a decline in funds invested in existing commercial real estate assets and properties planned for development, which in turn could reduce the commissions and fees that we earn. In addition, economic downturns may reduce demand for our valuation and other service line and sales transactions and financing services in our capital markets service line.

The performance of our property management services depends upon the performance of the properties we manage. This is because our fees are generally based on a percentage of rent collections from these properties. Rent collections may be affected by many factors, including: (1) real estate and financial market conditions prevailing generally and locally; (2) our ability to attract and retain creditworthy tenants, particularly during economic downturns; and (3) the magnitude of defaults by tenants under their respective leases, which may increase during distressed economic conditions.

Our service lines could also suffer from political or economic disruptions that affect interest rates or liquidity or create financial, market or regulatory uncertainty. For example, the U.K. has submitted formal notification under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty to the European Council of the U.K. to withdraw its membership in the European Union (commonly known as “Brexit”). Speculation about the terms and consequences of Brexit for the U.K. and other European Union members has caused and may continue to cause market volatility and currency fluctuations and adversely impact our clients’ confidence, which has resulted and may continue to result in a deterioration in our EMEA segment as leasing and investing activity slowed.

In continental Europe and Asia Pacific, the economies in certain countries where we operate can be uncertain, which may adversely affect our financial performance. Economic, political and regulatory uncertainty as well as significant changes and volatility in the financial markets and business environment, and in the global landscape, make it increasingly difficult for us to predict our financial performance into the future. As a result, any guidance or outlook that we provide on our performance is based on then-current conditions, and there is a risk that such guidance may turn out to be inaccurate.

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We have numerous local, regional and global competitors across all of our service lines and the geographies that we serve, and further industry consolidation, fragmentation or innovation could lead to significant future competition.

We compete across a variety of service lines within the commercial real estate services and investment industry, including property, facilities and project management, leasing, capital markets (including representation of both buyers and sellers in real estate sales transactions and the arrangement of financing), and advisory on real estate debt and equity decisions. Although we are one of the largest commercial real estate services firms in the world as measured by 2017 revenue, our relative competitive position varies significantly across geographies, property types and service lines. Depending on the geography, property type or service line, we face competition from other commercial real estate services providers and investment firms, including outsourcing companies that have traditionally competed in limited portions of our property, facilities management and project management service line and have expanded their offerings from time to time, in-house corporate real estate departments, developers, institutional lenders, insurance companies, investment banking firms, investment managers, accounting firms and consulting firms. Some of these firms may have greater financial resources allocated to a particular geography, property type or service line than we have allocated to that geography, property type or service line. In addition, future changes in laws could lead to the entry of other new competitors, such as financial institutions. Although many of our existing competitors are local or regional firms that are smaller than we are, some of these competitors are larger on a local or regional basis. We are further subject to competition from large national and multinational firms that have similar service and investment competencies to ours, and it is possible that further industry consolidation could lead to much larger and more formidable competitors globally or in the particular geographies, property types, service lines that we serve. Our industry has continued to consolidate, as evidenced by CBRE Group, Inc.’s 2015 acquisition of the facilities management business of Johnson Controls, Inc., Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated’s 2011 acquisition of King Sturge in Europe and other recent consolidations. Beyond our two direct competitors, CBRE Group, Inc. and Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated, the sector is highly fragmented amongst regional, local and boutique providers. Although many of our competitors across our larger product and service lines are smaller local or regional firms, they may have a stronger presence in their core markets than we do. In addition, disruptive innovation by existing or new competitors could alter the competitive landscape in the future and require us to accurately identify and assess such changes and make timely and effective changes to our strategies and business model to compete effectively. There is no assurance that we will be able to compete effectively, to maintain current fee levels or margins, or maintain or increase our market share.

Adverse developments in the credit markets may harm our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our capital markets (including representation of buyers and sellers in sales transactions and the arrangement of financing) and valuation and other service lines are sensitive to credit cost and availability as well as marketplace liquidity. Additionally, the revenues in all of our service lines are dependent to some extent on the overall volume of activity (and pricing) in the commercial real estate market.

Disruptions in the credit markets may adversely affect our advisory services to investors, owners, and occupiers of real estate in connection with the leasing, disposition and acquisition of property. If our clients are unable to procure credit on favorable terms, there may be fewer completed leasing transactions, dispositions and acquisitions of property. In addition, if purchasers of commercial real estate are not able to obtain favorable financing, resulting in the lack of disposition and acquisition opportunities for our projects, our valuation and other and capital markets service lines may be unable to generate incentive fees.

Our operations are subject to social, political and economic risks in different countries as well as foreign currency volatility.

We conduct a significant portion of our business and employ a substantial number of people outside of the United States and as a result, we are subject to risks associated with doing business globally. Our business

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consists of service lines operating in multiple regions inside and outside of the United States. Outside of the United States, we generate earnings in other currencies and our operating performance is subject to fluctuations relative to the U.S. dollar, or USD. As we continue to grow our international operations through acquisitions and organic growth, these currency fluctuations have the potential to positively or adversely affect our operating results measured in USD. It can be difficult to compare period-over-period financial statements when the movement in currencies against the USD does not reflect trends in the local underlying business as reported in its local currency.

Due to the constantly changing currency exposures to which we are subject and the volatility of currency exchange rates, we cannot predict the effect of exchange rate fluctuations upon future operating results. For example, Brexit was associated with a significant decline in the value of the British pound sterling against the USD in 2016 and negotiations with respect to the terms of the U.K.’s withdrawal or other changes to the membership or policies of the European Union, or speculation about such events, may be associated with increased volatility in the British pound sterling or other foreign currency exchange rates against the USD.

In addition to exposure to foreign currency fluctuations, our international operations expose us to international economic trends as well as foreign government policy measures. Additional circumstances and developments related to international operations that could negatively affect our business, financial condition or results of operations include, but are not limited to, the following factors:

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Our business activities are subject to a number of laws that prohibit various forms of corruption, including local laws that prohibit both commercial and governmental bribery and anti-bribery laws that have a global reach, such as the FCPA and the U.K. Bribery Act. Additionally, our business activities are subject to various economic and trade sanctions programs and import and export control laws, including (without limitation) the economic sanctions rules and regulations administered by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), which prohibit or restrict transactions or dealings with specified countries and territories, their governments, and—in certain circumstances—their nationals, as well as with individuals and entities that are targeted by list-based sanctions programs. We maintain written policies and procedures and implement anti-corruption and anti-money laundering compliance programs, as well as programs designed to enable us to comply with applicable economic and trade sanctions programs and import and export control laws (“Compliance Programs”). However, coordinating our activities to address the broad range of complex legal and regulatory environments in which we operate presents significant challenges. Our current Compliance Programs may not address the full scope of all possible risks, or may not be adhered to by our employees or other persons acting on our behalf. Accordingly, we may not be successful in complying with regulations in all situations and violations may result in criminal or civil sanctions, including material monetary fines, penalties, equitable remedies (including disgorgement), and other costs against us or our employees, and may have a material adverse effect on our reputation and business.

In addition, we have penetrated, and seek to continue to enter into, emerging markets to further expand our global platform. However, certain countries in which we operate may be deemed to present heightened business, operational, legal and compliance risks. We may not be successful in effectively evaluating and monitoring the key business, operational, legal and compliance risks specific to those markets. The political and cultural risks present in emerging countries could also harm our ability to successfully execute our operations or manage our service lines there.

Our success depends upon the retention of our senior management, as well as our ability to attract and retain qualified and experienced employees.

We are dependent upon the retention of our leasing and capital markets professionals, who generate a significant amount of our revenues, as well as other revenue producing professionals. The departure of any of our key employees, including our senior executive leadership, or the loss of a significant number of key revenue producers, if we are unable to quickly hire and integrate qualified replacements, could cause our business, financial condition and results of operations to suffer. Competition for these personnel is significant, and our industry is subject to a relatively high turnover of broker and other key revenue producers, and we may not be able to successfully recruit, integrate or retain sufficiently qualified personnel. In addition, the growth of our business is largely dependent upon our ability to attract and retain qualified support personnel in all areas of our business. We and our competitors use equity incentives and sign-on and retention bonuses to help attract, retain and incentivize key personnel. As competition is significant for the services of such personnel, the expense of such incentives and bonuses may increase and we may be unable to attract or retain such personnel to the same extent that we have in the past. Any significant decline in, or failure to grow, our ordinary share price may result in an increased risk of loss of these key personnel. Furthermore, shareholder influence on our compensation practices, including our ability to issue equity compensation, may decrease our ability to offer attractive compensation to key personnel and make recruiting, retaining and incentivizing such personnel more difficult. If we are unable to attract and retain these qualified personnel, our growth may be limited and our business and operating results could suffer.

We rely on our Principal Shareholders.

We have in recent years depended on our relationship with our Principal Shareholders to help guide our business plan. Our Principal Shareholders have significant expertise in operational, financial, strategic and other matters. This expertise has been available to us through the representatives the Principal Shareholders have had on our board of directors and as a result of our management services agreement with the Principal Shareholders.

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Pursuant to a shareholders’ agreement to be executed in connection with the closing of this offering, representatives of the Principal Shareholders will have the ability to appoint five of the seats on our board of directors, and as a result Jonathan Coslet, Timothy Dattels, Qi Chen, Lincoln Pan, and Rajeev Ruparelia will be appointed to our board of directors. After the offering, the Principal Shareholders may elect to reduce their ownership in our company or reduce their involvement on our board of directors, which could reduce or eliminate the benefits we have historically achieved through our relationship with them.

Our growth has benefited significantly from acquisitions, which may not perform as expected, and similar opportunities may not be available in the future.

A significant component of our growth over time has been generated by acquisitions. Starting in 2014, the Principal Shareholders and management have built our company through the combination of DTZ, Cassidy Turley and C&W Group. Any future growth through acquisitions will depend in part upon the continued availability of suitable acquisition candidates at favorable prices and upon advantageous terms and conditions, which may not be available to us, as well as sufficient funds from our cash on hand, cash flow from operations, existing debt facilities and additional indebtedness to fund these acquisitions. We may incur significant additional debt from time to time to finance any such acquisitions, subject to the restrictions contained in the documents governing our then-existing indebtedness. If we incur additional debt, the risks associated with our leverage, including our ability to service our then-existing debt, would increase. Acquisitions involve risks that business judgments concerning the value, strengths and weaknesses of businesses acquired may prove incorrect. Future acquisitions and any necessary related financings also may involve significant transaction-related expenses, which include severance, lease termination, transaction and deferred financing costs, among others. See “—Despite our current indebtedness levels, we and our subsidiaries may still be able to incur substantially more debt, which could further exacerbate the risks associated with our substantial leverage.”

We have had, and may continue to experience, challenges in integrating operations, brands and information technology systems acquired from other companies. This could result in the diversion of management’s attention from other business concerns and the potential loss of our key employees or clients or those of the acquired operations. The integration process itself may be disruptive to our business and the acquired company’s businesses as it requires coordination of geographically diverse organizations and implementation of new branding, i.e., transitioning to the “Cushman & Wakefield” brand, and accounting and information technology systems. There is generally an adverse impact on net income for a period of time after the completion of an acquisition driven by transaction-related and integration expenses. Acquisitions also frequently involve significant costs related to integrating information technology and accounting and management services.

We complete acquisitions with the expectation that they will result in various benefits, including enhanced revenues, a strengthened market position, cross-selling opportunities, cost synergies and tax benefits. Achieving the anticipated benefits of these acquisitions is subject to a number of uncertainties, including the realization of accretive benefits in the timeframe anticipated, whether we will experience greater-than-expected attrition from professionals licensed or associated with acquired firms and whether we can successfully integrate the acquired business. Failure to achieve these anticipated benefits could result in increased costs, decreases in the amount of expected revenues and diversion of management’s time and energy, which could in turn materially and adversely affect our overall business, financial condition and operating results.

Our brand and reputation are key assets of our company, and our business may be affected by how we are perceived in the marketplace.

Our brand and its attributes are key assets, and we believe our continued success depends on our ability to preserve, grow and leverage the value of our brand. Our ability to attract and retain clients is highly dependent upon the external perceptions of our level of service, trustworthiness, business practices, management, workplace culture, financial condition, our response to unexpected events and other subjective qualities. Negative perceptions or publicity regarding these matters, even if related to seemingly isolated incidents and whether or

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not factually correct, could erode trust and confidence and damage our reputation among existing and potential clients, which could make it difficult for us to attract new clients and maintain existing ones. Negative public opinion could result from actual or alleged conduct in any number of activities or circumstances, including handling of client complaints, regulatory compliance, such as compliance with the FCPA, the U.K. Bribery Act and other anti-bribery, anti-money laundering and corruption laws, the use and protection of client and other sensitive information and from actions taken by regulators or others in response to such conduct. Social media channels can also cause rapid, widespread reputational harm to our brand.

Our brand and reputation may also be harmed by actions taken by third parties that are outside our control. For example, any shortcoming of or controversy related to a third-party vendor may be attributed to us, thus damaging our reputation and brand value and increasing the attractiveness of our competitors’ services. Also, business decisions or other actions or omissions of our joint venture partners, the Principal Shareholders or management may adversely affect the value of our investments, result in litigation or regulatory action against us and otherwise damage our reputation and brand. Adverse developments with respect to our industry may also, by association, negatively impact our reputation, or result in greater regulatory or legislative scrutiny or litigation against us. Furthermore, as a company with headquarters and operations located in the United States, a negative perception of the United States arising from its political or other positions could harm the perception of our company and our brand. Although we monitor developments for areas of potential risk to our reputation and brand, negative perceptions or publicity could materially and adversely affect our revenues and profitability.

The protection of our brand, including related trademarks, may require the expenditure of significant financial and operational resources. Moreover, the steps we take to protect our brand may not adequately protect our rights or prevent third parties from infringing or misappropriating our trademarks. Even when we detect infringement or misappropriation of our trademarks, we may not be able to enforce all such trademarks. Any unauthorized use by third parties of our brand may adversely affect our brand. Furthermore, as we continue to expand our business, especially internationally, there is a risk we may face claims of infringement or other alleged violations of third-party intellectual property rights, which may restrict us from leveraging our brand in a manner consistent with our business goals.

Our credit agreements impose operating and financial restrictions on us, and in an event of a default, all of our borrowings would become immediately due and payable.

Our credit agreements impose, and the terms of any future debt may impose, operating and other restrictions on us and many of our subsidiaries. These restrictions affect, and in many respects limit or prohibit, our ability to:

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In addition, under certain circumstances we will be required to satisfy and maintain specified financial ratios and other financial condition tests under certain covenants in our First Lien Credit Agreement. See “Description of Certain Indebtedness.” Our ability to comply with the terms of our credit agreements can be affected by events beyond our control, including prevailing economic, financial market and industry conditions, and we cannot give assurance that we will be able to comply when required. These terms could have an adverse effect on our business by limiting our ability to take advantage of financing, merger and acquisition or other opportunities. We continue to monitor our projected compliance with the terms of our credit agreements.

A breach of any restrictive covenants in our credit agreements could result in an event of default under our debt instruments. If any such event of default occurs, the lenders under our credit agreements may elect to declare all outstanding borrowings, together with accrued interest and other fees, to be immediately due and payable. The lenders under our credit agreements also have the right in these circumstances to terminate any commitments they have to provide further borrowings and to foreclose on collateral pledged under the credit agreements. In addition, an event of default under our credit agreements could trigger a cross-default or cross-acceleration under our other material debt instruments and credit agreements.

Our credit agreements are jointly and severally guaranteed by substantially all of our material subsidiaries organized in the United States, England and Wales, Australia and Singapore, subject to certain exceptions. Each guarantee is secured by a pledge of substantially all of the assets of the subsidiary giving the pledge.

Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. and S&P Global Ratings rate our significant outstanding debt. These ratings, and any downgrades or any written notice of any intended downgrading or of any possible change, may affect our ability to borrow as well as the costs of our future borrowings.

We have a substantial amount of indebtedness, which may adversely affect our available cash flow and our ability to operate our business, remain in compliance with debt covenants and make payments on our indebtedness.

We have a substantial amount of indebtedness. As of March 31, 2018, our total debt was approximately $3.1 billion, nearly all of which consisted of debt under our credit agreements. Our First Lien Loan (as defined in “Description of Certain Indebtedness”) had a balance, net of deferred financing fees, at March 31, 2018 of $2.6 billion, and our Second Lien Loan had a balance, net of deferred financing fees, of $460.0 million. As of March 31, 2018, we had no outstanding funds drawn under our Revolver (as defined in “Description of Certain Indebtedness”). For more information regarding our existing indebtedness, see “Description of Certain Indebtedness.”

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Our level of indebtedness increases the possibility that we may be unable to pay the principal amount of our indebtedness and other obligations when due. Our substantial indebtedness, combined with our other financial obligations and contractual commitments, could have important consequences. For example, it could:

Any of the above listed factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.

Furthermore, our interest expense would increase if interest rates increase because our debt under our credit agreements bears interest at floating rates, which could adversely affect our cash flows. If we do not have sufficient earnings to service our debt, we may be required to refinance all or part of our existing debt, including the First Lien Loan and Second Lien Loan, sell assets, borrow more money or sell additional equity. There is no guarantee that we would be able to meet these requirements.

Despite our current indebtedness levels, we and our subsidiaries may still be able to incur substantially more debt, which could further exacerbate the risks associated with our substantial leverage.

We may incur additional debt from time to time to finance strategic acquisitions, investments, joint ventures or for other purposes, subject to the restrictions contained in the documents governing our indebtedness. Although the credit agreements contain restrictions on the incurrence of additional debt, these restrictions are subject to a number of significant qualifications and exceptions, and the debt incurred in compliance with these restrictions could be substantial. If we incur additional debt, the risks associated with our leverage, including our ability to service our debt, would increase.

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To service our indebtedness, we will require a significant amount of cash. Our ability to generate cash depends on many factors beyond our control, and any failure to meet our debt service obligations could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.

Our ability to pay interest on and principal of our debt obligations principally depends upon our operating performance. As a result, prevailing economic conditions and financial, business and other factors, many of which are beyond our control, will affect our ability to make these payments and reduce indebtedness over time.

In addition, we conduct our operations through our subsidiaries. Accordingly, repayment of our indebtedness is dependent on the generation of cash flow by our subsidiaries and their ability to make such cash available to us by dividend, debt repayment or otherwise. Our subsidiaries may not be able to, or may not be permitted to, make distributions to enable us to make payments in respect of our indebtedness. Each of our subsidiaries is a distinct legal entity and, under certain circumstances, legal and contractual restrictions may limit our ability to obtain cash from our subsidiaries.

If we do not generate sufficient cash flow from operations to satisfy our debt service obligations, we may have to undertake alternative financing plans, such as refinancing or restructuring our indebtedness, including our First Lien Loan and Second Lien Loan, selling assets or seeking to raise additional capital. Our ability to restructure or refinance our indebtedness, including our First Lien Loan and Second Lien Loan, if at all, will depend on the condition of the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. Any refinancing of our indebtedness could be at higher interest rates and may require us to comply with more onerous covenants, which could further restrict our business operations. In addition, the terms of existing or future debt instruments may restrict us from adopting some of these alternatives. Our inability to generate sufficient cash flow to satisfy our debt service obligations, or to refinance our obligations at all or on commercially reasonable terms, could affect our ability to satisfy our debt obligations and have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.

We are subject to various litigation risks and may face financial liabilities and/or damage to our reputation as a result of litigation.

We are exposed to various litigation risks and from time to time are party to various legal proceedings that involve claims for substantial amounts of money. We depend on our business relationships and our reputation for high-caliber professional services to attract and retain clients. As a result, allegations against us, irrespective of the ultimate outcome of that allegation, may harm our professional reputation and as such materially damage our business and its prospects, in addition to any financial impact.

As a licensed real estate broker and provider of commercial real estate services, we and our licensed sales professionals and independent contractors that work for us are subject to statutory due diligence, disclosure and standard-of-care obligations. Failure to fulfill these obligations could subject us or our sales professionals or independent contractors to litigation from parties who purchased, sold or leased properties that we brokered or managed in the jurisdictions in which we operate.

We are subject to claims by participants in real estate sales and leasing transactions, as well as building owners and companies for whom we provide management services, claiming that we did not fulfill our obligations. We are also subject to claims made by clients for whom we provided appraisal and valuation services and/or third parties who perceive themselves as having been negatively affected by our appraisals and/or valuations. We also could be subject to audits and/or fines from various local real estate authorities if they determine that we are violating licensing laws by failing to follow certain laws, rules and regulations.

In our property, facilities and project management service line, we hire and supervise third-party contractors to provide services for our managed properties. We may be subject to claims for defects, negligent performance of work or other similar actions or omissions by third parties we do not control. Moreover, our clients may seek

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to hold us accountable for the actions of contractors because of our role as property or facilities manager or project manager, even if we have technically disclaimed liability as a contractual matter, in which case we may be pressured to participate in a financial settlement for purposes of preserving the client relationship.

Because we employ large numbers of building staff in facilities that we manage, we face the risk of potential claims relating to employment injuries, termination and other employment matters. While we are generally indemnified by the building owners in respect of such claims, we can provide no assurance that will continue to be the case. We also face employment-related claims as an employer with respect to our corporate and other employees for which we would bear ultimate responsibility in the event of an adverse outcome in such matters.

In addition, especially given the size of our operations, there is always a risk that a third party may claim that our systems or offerings, including those used by our brokers and clients, may infringe such third party’s intellectual property rights and may result in claims or suits by third parties. Any such claims or litigation, whether successful or unsuccessful, could require us to enter into settlement agreements with such third parties (which may not be on terms favorable to us), to stop or revise our use or sale of affected systems, products or services or to pay damages, which could materially negatively affect our business.

Adverse outcomes of property and facilities management disputes and related or other litigation could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects, particularly to the extent we may be liable on our contracts, or if our liabilities exceed the amounts of the insurance coverage procured and maintained by us. Some of these litigation risks may be mitigated by any the commercial insurance policies we maintain in amounts we believe are appropriate. However, in the event of a substantial loss or certain types of claims, our insurance coverage and/or self-insurance reserve levels might not be sufficient to pay the full damages.

Adverse outcomes of property and facilities management disputes and related or other litigation could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects, particularly to the extent we may be liable on our contracts, or if our liabilities exceed the amounts of the insurance coverage procured and maintained by us. Some of these litigation risks may be mitigated by the commercial insurance policies we maintain. However, in the event of a substantial loss or certain types of claims, our insurance coverage and/or self-insurance reserve levels might not be sufficient to pay the full damages. Additionally, in the event of grossly negligent or intentionally wrongful conduct, insurance policies that we may have may not cover us at all. Further, the value of otherwise valid claims we hold under insurance policies could become uncollectible in the event of the covering insurance company’s insolvency, although we seek to limit this risk by placing our commercial insurance only with highly rated companies. Any of these events could materially negatively impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

We are substantially dependent on long-term client relationships and on revenue received for services under various service agreements.

Many of the service agreements we have with our clients may be canceled by the client for any reason with as little as 30 to 60 days’ notice, as is typical in the industry. Some agreements related to our leasing service line may be rescinded without notice. In this competitive market, if we are unable to maintain long-term client relationships or are otherwise unable to retain existing clients and develop new clients, our business, results of operations and/or financial condition may be materially adversely affected. The global economic downturn and resulting weaknesses in the markets in which they themselves compete led to additional pricing pressure from clients as they came under financial pressure. These effects have continued to moderate, but they could increase again in the wake of the continuing political and economic uncertainties within the European Union, the United States and China, including as a result of volatility in oil and commodity prices, changes in trade policies and other political and commercial factors over which we have no control.

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The concentration of business with corporate clients can increase business risk, and our business can be adversely affected due to the loss of certain of these clients.

We value the expansion of business relationships with individual corporate clients because of the increased efficiency and economics that can result from developing recurring business from performing an increasingly broad range of services for the same client. Although our client portfolio is currently highly diversified, as we grow our business, relationships with certain corporate clients may increase, and our client portfolio may become increasingly concentrated. For example, part of our strategy is to increase our revenues from existing clients which may lead to an increase in corporate clients and therefore greater concentration of revenues. Having increasingly large and concentrated clients also can lead to greater or more concentrated risks if, among other possibilities, any such client (1) experiences its own financial problems; (2) becomes bankrupt or insolvent, which can lead to our failure to be paid for services we have previously provided or funds we have previously advanced; (3) decides to reduce its operations or its real estate facilities; (4) makes a change in its real estate strategy, such as no longer outsourcing its real estate operations; (5) decides to change its providers of real estate services; or (6) merges with another corporation or otherwise undergoes a change of control, which may result in new management taking over with a different real estate philosophy or in different relationships with other real estate providers.

Where we provide real estate services to firms in the financial services industry, including banks and investment banks, we are experiencing indirectly the increasing extent of the regulatory environment to which they are subject in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. This increases the cost of doing business with them, which we are not always able to pass on, as a result of the additional resources and processes we are required to provide as a critical supplier.

Significant portions of our revenue and cash flow are seasonal, which could cause our financial results and liquidity to fluctuate significantly.

A significant portion of our revenue is seasonal, especially for service lines such as leasing and capital markets, which impacts the comparison of our financial condition and results of operations on a quarter-by-quarter basis. Historically, our fee revenue and operating profit tend to be lowest in the first quarter, and highest in the fourth quarter of each year. Also, we have historically relied on our internally generated cash flow to fund our working capital needs and ongoing capital expenditures on an annual basis. Our internally generated cash flow is seasonal and is typically lowest in the first quarter of the year, when fee revenue is lowest and largest in the fourth quarter of the year when fee revenue is highest. This variance among periods makes it difficult to compare our financial condition and results of operations on a quarter-by-quarter basis. In addition, the seasonal nature of our internally generated cash flow can result in a mismatch with funding needs for working capital and ongoing capital expenditures, which we manage using available cash on hand and, as necessary, our revolving credit facility. We are therefore dependent on the availability of cash on hand and our debt facilities, especially in the first and second quarters of the year. Further, as a result of the seasonal nature of our business, political, economic or other unforeseen disruptions occurring in the fourth quarter that impact our ability to close large transactions may have a disproportionate effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

A failure to appropriately address actual or perceived conflicts of interest could adversely affect our service lines.

Our Company has a global business with different service lines and a broad client base and is therefore subject to numerous potential, actual or perceived conflicts of interests in the provision of services to our existing and potential clients. For example, conflicts may arise from our position as broker to both owners and tenants in commercial real estate lease transactions. We have adopted various policies, controls and procedures to address or limit actual or perceived conflicts, but these policies and procedures may not be adequate and may not be adhered to by our employees. Appropriately dealing with conflicts of interest is complex and difficult and our reputation could be damaged and cause us to lose existing clients or fail to gain new clients if we fail, or appear

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to fail, to identify, disclose and manage potential conflicts of interest, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, it is possible that in some jurisdictions regulations could be changed to limit our ability to act for parties where conflicts exist even with informed consent, which could limit our market share in those markets. There can be no assurance that conflicts of interest will not arise in the future that could cause material harm to us.

Failure to maintain and execute information technology strategies and ensure that our employees adapt to changes in technology could materially and adversely affect our ability to remain competitive in the market.

Our business relies heavily on information technology, including on solutions provided by third parties, to deliver services that meet the needs of our clients. If we are unable to effectively execute and maintain our information technology strategies or adopt new technologies and processes relevant to our service platform, our ability to deliver high-quality services may be materially impaired. In addition, we make significant investments in new systems and tools to achieve competitive advantages and efficiencies. Implementation of such investments in information technology could exceed estimated budgets and we may experience challenges that prevent new strategies or technologies from being realized according to anticipated schedules. If we are unable to maintain current information technology and processes or encounter delays, or fail to exploit new technologies, then the execution of our business plans may be disrupted. Similarly, our employees require effective tools and techniques to perform functions integral to our business. Our payroll and compensation technology systems are important to ensuring that key personnel, in particular commission based personnel, are compensated accurately and on a timely basis. Failure to pay professionals the compensation they are due in a timely manner could result in higher attrition. Failure to successfully provide such tools and systems, or ensure that employees have properly adopted them, could materially and adversely impact our ability to achieve positive business outcomes.

Failure to maintain the security of our information and technology networks, including personally identifiable and client information, intellectual property and proprietary business information could significantly adversely affect us.

Security breaches and other disruptions of our information and technology networks could compromise our information and intellectual property and expose us to liability, reputational harm and significant remediation costs, which could cause material harm to our business and financial results. In the ordinary course of our business, we collect and store sensitive data, including our proprietary business information and intellectual property, and that of our clients and personally identifiable information of our employees, contractors and vendors, in our data centers and on our networks. The secure processing, maintenance and transmission of this information are critical to our operations. Despite our security measures, and those of our third-party service providers, our information technology and infrastructure may be vulnerable to attacks by third parties or breached due to employee error, malfeasance or other disruptions. A significant actual or potential theft, loss, corruption, exposure, fraudulent use or misuse of client, employee or other personally identifiable or proprietary business data, whether by third parties or as a result of employee malfeasance or otherwise, non-compliance with our contractual or other legal obligations regarding such data or intellectual property or a violation of our privacy and security policies with respect to such data could result in significant remediation and other costs, fines, litigation or regulatory actions against us. Such an event could additionally disrupt our operations and the services we provide to clients, harm our relationships with contractors and vendors, damage our reputation, result in the loss of a competitive advantage, impact our ability to provide timely and accurate financial data and cause a loss of confidence in our services and financial reporting, which could adversely affect our business, revenues, competitive position and investor confidence. Additionally, we rely on third parties to support our information and technology networks, including cloud storage solution providers, and as a result have less direct control over our data and information technology systems. Such third parties are also vulnerable to security breaches and compromised security systems, for which we may not be indemnified and which could materially adversely affect us and our reputation. Furthermore, our, or our third-party vendors’, inability to detect unauthorized use (for example, by current or former employees) or take appropriate or timely steps to enforce our intellectual property rights may have an adverse effect on our business.

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Interruption or failure of our information technology, communications systems or data services could impair our ability to provide our services effectively, which could damage our reputation and materially harm our operating results.

Our business requires the continued operation of information technology and communication systems and network infrastructure. Our ability to conduct our global business may be materially adversely affected by disruptions to these systems or infrastructure. Our information technology and communications systems are vulnerable to damage or disruption from fire, power loss, telecommunications failure, system malfunctions, computer viruses, cyber-attacks, natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes and floods, acts of war or terrorism, employee errors or malfeasance, or other events which are beyond our control. With respect to cyberattacks and viruses, these pose growing threats to many companies, and we have been a target and may continue to be a target of such threats, which could expose us to liability, reputational harm and significant remediation costs and cause material harm to our business and financial results. In addition, the operation and maintenance of our systems and networks is in some cases dependent on third-party technologies, systems and services providers for which there is no certainty of uninterrupted availability. Any of these events could cause system interruption, delays and loss, corruption or exposure of critical data or intellectual property and may also disrupt our ability to provide services to or interact with our clients, contractors and vendors, and we may not be able to successfully implement contingency plans that depend on communication or travel. Furthermore, any such event could result in substantial recovery and remediation costs and liability to customers, business partners and other third parties. We have business continuity and disaster recovery plans and backup systems to reduce the potentially adverse effect of such events, but our disaster recovery planning may not be sufficient and cannot account for all eventualities, and a catastrophic event that results in the destruction or disruption of any of our data centers or our critical business or information technology systems could severely affect our ability to conduct normal business operations, and as a result, our future operating results could be materially adversely affected.

Our business relies heavily on the use of software and commercial real estate data, some of which is purchased or licensed from third-party providers for which there is no certainty of uninterrupted availability. A disruption of our ability to access such software, including an inability to renew such licenses on the same or similar terms, or provide data to our professionals and/or our clients, contractors and vendors or an inadvertent exposure of proprietary data could damage our reputation and competitive position, and our operating results could be adversely affected.

Infrastructure disruptions may disrupt our ability to manage real estate for clients or may adversely affect the value of real estate investments we make on behalf of clients.

The buildings we manage for clients, which include some of the world’s largest office properties and retail centers, are used by numerous people daily. As a result, fires, earthquakes, floods, other natural disasters, defects and terrorist attacks can result in significant loss of life, and, to the extent we are held to have been negligent in connection with our management of the affected properties, we could incur significant financial liabilities and reputational harm.

Our goodwill and other intangible assets could become impaired, which may require us to take significant non-cash charges against earnings.

Under current accounting guidelines, we must assess, at least annually and potentially more frequently, whether the value of our goodwill and other intangible assets has been impaired. Any impairment of goodwill or other intangible assets as a result of such analysis would result in a non-cash charge against earnings, and such charge could materially adversely affect our reported results of operations, shareholders’ equity and our ordinary share price. A significant and sustained decline in our future cash flows, a significant adverse change in the economic environment, slower growth rates or if our ordinary share price falls below our net book value per share for a sustained period, could result in the need to perform additional impairment analysis in future periods.

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If we were to conclude that a future write-down of goodwill or other intangible assets is necessary, then we would record such additional charges, which could materially adversely affect our results of operations.

Our service lines, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be adversely affected by new laws or regulations or by changes in existing laws or regulations or the application thereof. If we fail to comply with laws and regulations applicable to us, or make incorrect determinations in complex tax regimes, we may incur significant financial penalties.

We are subject to numerous federal, state, local and non-U.S. laws and regulations specific to the services we perform in our service lines. Brokerage of real estate sales and leasing transactions and the provision of valuation services requires us and our employees to maintain applicable licenses in each U.S. state and certain non-U.S. jurisdictions in which we perform these services. If we and our employees fail to maintain our licenses or conduct these activities without a license, or violate any of the regulations covering our licenses, we may be required to pay fines (including treble damages in certain states) or return commissions received or have our licenses suspended or revoked. A number of our services, including the services provided by certain of our indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries in the U.S., U.K., France and Japan, are subject to regulation or oversight by the SEC, FINRA, the Defense Security Service, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority, the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (France), the Financial Services Agency (Japan), the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (Japan) or other self-regulatory organizations and foreign and state regulators. Compliance failures or regulatory action could adversely affect our business. We could be subject to disciplinary or other actions in the future due to claimed noncompliance with these regulations, which could have a material adverse effect on our operations and profitability.

We are also subject to laws of broader applicability, such as tax, securities, environmental, employment laws and anti-bribery, anti-money laundering and corruption laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act, occupational health and safety regulations, U.S. state wage-and-hour laws, the FCPA and the U.K. Bribery Act. Failure to comply with these requirements could result in the imposition of significant fines by governmental authorities, awards of damages to private litigants and significant amounts paid in legal fees or settlements of these matters.

We operate in many jurisdictions with complex and varied tax regimes, and are subject to different forms of taxation resulting in a variable effective tax rate. In addition, from time to time we engage in transactions across different tax jurisdictions. Due to the different tax laws in the many jurisdictions where we operate, we are often required to make subjective determinations. The tax authorities in the various jurisdictions where we carry on business may not agree with the determinations that are made by us with respect to the application of tax law. Such disagreements could result in disputes and, ultimately, in the payment of additional funds to the government authorities in the jurisdictions where we carry on business, which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations. In addition, changes in tax rules or the outcome of tax assessments and audits could have an adverse effect on our results in any particular quarter.

As the size and scope of our business has increased significantly during the past several years, both the difficulty of ensuring compliance with numerous licensing and other regulatory requirements and the possible loss resulting from non-compliance have increased. The global economic crisis has resulted in increased government and legislative activities, including the introduction of new legislation and changes to rules and regulations, which we expect will continue into the future. New or revised legislation or regulations applicable to our business, both within and outside of the United States, as well as changes in administrations or enforcement priorities may have an adverse effect on our business, including increasing the costs of regulatory compliance or preventing us from providing certain types of services in certain jurisdictions or in connection with certain transactions or clients. For example, on May 25, 2018, the European General Data Protection Regulation will become effective with a greater territorial reach than existing laws and so may apply to many of our contracts and agreements throughout the world. To the extent it applies, we might be forced to update certain of our agreements, which may take significant time and cost. We are unable to predict how any of these new laws, rules,

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regulations and proposals will be implemented or in what form, or whether any additional or similar changes to laws or regulations, including the interpretation or implementation thereof, will occur in the future. Any such action could affect us in substantial and unpredictable ways and could have an adverse effect on our service lines, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Any failure by us to execute on our strategy for operational efficiency successfully could result in total costs and expenses that are greater than expected.

We have an operating framework that includes a disciplined focus on operational efficiency. As part of this framework, we have adopted several initiatives, including development of our technology platforms, workflow processes and systems to improve client engagement and outcomes across our service lines .

Our ability to continue to achieve the anticipated cost savings and other benefits from these initiatives within the expected time frame is subject to many estimates and assumptions. These estimates and assumptions are subject to significant economic, competitive and other uncertainties, some of which are beyond our control. In addition, we are vulnerable to increased risks associated with implementing changes to our tools, processes and systems given our varied service lines, the broad range of geographic regions in which we and our customers operate and the number of acquisitions that we have completed in recent years. If these estimates and assumptions are incorrect, if we are unsuccessful at implementing changes, if we experience delays, or if other unforeseen events occur, we may not achieve new or continue to achieve operational efficiencies and as a result our business and results of operations could be adversely affected.

We may be subject to environmental liability as a result of our role as a property or facility manager or developer of real estate.

Various laws and regulations impose liability on real property owners or operators for the cost of investigating, cleaning up or removing contamination caused by hazardous or toxic substances at a property. In our role as a property or facility manager or developer, we could be held liable as an operator for such costs. This liability may be imposed without regard to the legality of the original actions and without regard to whether we knew of, or were responsible for, the presence of the hazardous or toxic substances. If we fail to disclose environmental issues, we could also be liable to a buyer or lessee of a property. If we incur any such liability, our business could suffer significantly as it could be difficult for us to develop or sell such properties, or borrow funds using such properties as collateral. In the event of a substantial liability, our insurance coverage might be insufficient to pay the full damages, or the scope of available coverage may not cover certain of these liabilities. Additionally, liabilities incurred to comply with more stringent future environmental requirements could adversely affect any or all of service lines.

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Risks Related to this Offering and Ownership of Our Ordinary Shares

We expect to be a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards and, as a result, will qualify for, and intend to rely on, exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. You will not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to such requirements.

Upon completion of this offering, the Principal Shareholders will continue to control a majority of the voting power of our outstanding ordinary shares. As a result, we will be a “controlled company” as that term is set forth in the NYSE corporate governance standards. Under these rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements:

These requirements will not apply to us as long as we remain a “controlled company.” Following this offering, we may utilize some or all of these exemptions. As a result, our nominating and corporate governance committee and compensation committee will not consist entirely of independent directors. Accordingly, you will not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance standards. The Principal Shareholders’ significant ownership interest could adversely affect investors’ perceptions of our corporate governance.

The Principal Shareholders will continue to have significant influence over us after this offering, including control over decisions that require the approval of shareholders, which could limit your ability to influence the outcome of key transactions, including a change of control, and which may result in conflicts with us or you in the future.

We are currently controlled, and after this offering is completed will continue to be controlled, by the Principal Shareholders. Upon consummation of this offering, the Principal Shareholders will own approximately 70% of our total ordinary shares outstanding (or 67% if the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares is exercised in full). Pursuant to a shareholders’ agreement to be entered into in connection with the completion of this offering, the Principal Shareholders will have the right to designate five of the seats on our board of directors, and as a result Jonathan Coslet, Timothy Dattels, Qi Chen, Lincoln Pan and Rajeev Ruparelia will be appointed to our board of directors. In addition, the Principal Shareholders jointly have the right to designate for nomination one additional director, defined herein as the Joint Designee, who must qualify as independent under the NYSE rules and must meet the independence requirements of Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act, so long as they collectively own at least 50% of our total ordinary shares outstanding as of the closing of this offering. As a result, the Principal Shareholders will be able to exercise control over our affairs and policies, including the approval of certain actions such as amending our articles of association, commencing bankruptcy proceedings and taking certain actions (including, without limitation, incurring debt, issuing shares, selling assets and engaging in mergers and acquisitions), appointing members of our management and any transaction that requires shareholder approval regardless of whether others believe that such change or transaction is in our best interests. So long as the Principal Shareholders continue to hold a majority of our outstanding ordinary shares, the Principal Shareholders will have the ability to control the vote in any election of directors, amend our articles of association or take other actions requiring the vote of our shareholders. Even if the amount owned by the Principal Shareholders falls below 50%, the Principal Shareholders will continue to be able to strongly influence or effectively control our decisions. This control may also have the effect of deterring hostile takeovers, delaying

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or preventing changes of control or changes in management, or limiting the ability of our other shareholders to approve transactions that they may deem to be in the best interests of our company.

Additionally, the Principal Shareholders’ interests may not align with the interests of our other shareholders. The Principal Shareholders are in the business of making investments in companies and may acquire and hold interests in businesses that compete directly or indirectly with us. The Principal Shareholders may also pursue acquisition opportunities that may be complementary to our business, and, as a result, those acquisition opportunities may not be available to us.

Certain of our directors have relationships with the Principal Shareholders, which may cause conflicts of interest with respect to our business.

Following this offering, five of our seven directors will be affiliated with the Principal Shareholders. These directors have fiduciary duties to us and, in addition, have duties to the applicable Principal Shareholder. As a result, these directors may face real or apparent conflicts of interest with respect to matters affecting both us and the affiliated Principal Shareholder, whose interests may be adverse to ours in some circumstances.

Certain of our shareholders have the right to engage or invest in the same or similar businesses as us.

The Principal Shareholders have other investments and business activities in addition to their ownership of us. The Principal Shareholders have the right, and have no duty to abstain from exercising such right, to engage or invest in the same or similar businesses as us, do business with any of our clients, customers or vendors or employ or otherwise engage any of our officers, directors or employees. If the Principal Shareholders or any of their officers, directors or employees acquire knowledge of a potential transaction that could be a corporate opportunity, they have no duty, to the fullest extent permitted by law, to offer such corporate opportunity to us, our shareholders or our affiliates.

In the event that any of our directors and officers who is also a director, officer or employee of the Principal Shareholders acquires knowledge of a corporate opportunity or is offered a corporate opportunity, provided that this knowledge was not acquired solely in such person’s capacity as our director or officer and such person acts in good faith, then to the fullest extent permitted by law such person is deemed to have fully satisfied such person’s fiduciary duties owed to us and is not liable to us, if the Principal Shareholders pursue or acquire the corporate opportunity or if the Principal Shareholders do not present the corporate opportunity to us.

Additionally, the Principal Shareholders are in the business of making investments in companies and may currently hold, and may from time to time in the future acquire, controlling interests in businesses engaged in industries that complement or compete, directly or indirectly, with certain portions of our business. So long as the Principal Shareholders continue to indirectly own a significant amount of our equity, the Principal Shareholders will continue to be able to strongly influence or effectively control our decisions.

The rights of our shareholders may differ from the rights typically offered to shareholders of a U.S. corporation organized in Delaware.

We are incorporated under the laws of England and Wales. The rights of holders of our ordinary shares are governed by the laws of England and Wales, including the provisions of the U.K. Companies Act 2006, and by our articles of association. These rights differ in certain respects from the rights of shareholders in typical U.S. corporations organized in Delaware. The principal differences are set forth in “Description of Share Capital—Differences in Corporate Law.”

U.S. investors may have difficulty enforcing civil liabilities against our company, our directors or members of senior management and the experts named in this prospectus.

We are incorporated under the laws of England and Wales. The United States and the United Kingdom do not currently have a treaty providing for the recognition and enforcement of judgments, other than arbitration

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awards, in civil and commercial matters. The enforceability of any judgment of a U.S. federal or state court in the United Kingdom will depend on the laws and any treaties in effect at the time, including conflicts of laws principles (such as those bearing on the question of whether a U.K. court would recognize the basis on which a U.S. court had purported to exercise jurisdiction over a defendant). In this context, there is doubt as to the enforceability in the United Kingdom of civil liabilities based solely on the federal securities laws of the United States. In addition, awards for punitive damages in actions brought in the United States or elsewhere may be unenforceable in the United Kingdom. An award for monetary damages under U.S. securities laws would likely be considered punitive if it did not seek to compensate the claimant for loss or damage suffered and was intended to punish the defendant.

English law and provisions in our articles of association may have anti-takeover effects that could discourage an acquisition of us by others, even if an acquisition would be beneficial to our shareholders, and may prevent attempts by our shareholders to replace or remove our current management.

Certain provisions of the U.K. Companies Act 2006 and our articles of association may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control of us or changes in our management. For example, our articles of association include provisions that:

In addition, public limited companies are prohibited under the U.K. Companies Act 2006 from taking shareholder action by written resolution.

These provisions, alone or together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our management. See also “—Provisions in the U.K. City Code on Takeovers and Mergers may have anti-takeover effects that could discourage an acquisition of us by others, even if an acquisition would be beneficial to our shareholders” and “Description of Share Capital—Articles of Association and English Law Considerations.”

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Provisions in the U.K. City Code on Takeovers and Mergers may have anti-takeover effects that could discourage an acquisition of us by others, even if an acquisition would be beneficial to our shareholders.

The U.K. City Code on Takeovers and Mergers (“Takeover Code”) applies, among other things, to an offer for a public company whose registered office is in the United Kingdom (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) and whose securities are not admitted to trading on a regulated market in the United Kingdom (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man) if the company is considered by the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers (“Takeover Panel”) to have its place of central management and control in the United Kingdom (or the Channel Islands or the Isle of Man). This is known as the “residency test.” The test for central management and control under the Takeover Code is different from that used by the U.K. tax authorities. Under the Takeover Code, the Takeover Panel will determine whether we have our place of central management and control in the United Kingdom by looking at various factors, including the structure of our board of directors, the functions of the directors and where they are resident.

If at the time of a takeover offer the Takeover Panel determines that we have our place of central management and control in the United Kingdom, we would be subject to a number of rules and restrictions, including but not limited to the following: (1) our ability to enter into deal protection arrangements with a bidder would be extremely limited; (2) we might not, without the approval of our shareholders, be able to perform certain actions that could have the effect of frustrating an offer, such as issuing shares or carrying out acquisitions or disposals; and (3) we would be obliged to provide equality of information to all bona fide competing bidders.

As a public limited company incorporated in England and Wales, certain capital structure decisions will require shareholder approval, which may limit our flexibility to manage our capital structure.

The U.K. Companies Act 2006 provides that a board of directors of a public limited company may only allot shares (or grant rights to subscribe for or convertible into shares) with the prior authorization of shareholders, such authorization stating the maximum amount of shares that may be allotted under such authorization and specify the date on which such authorization will expire, being not more than five years, each as specified in the articles of association or relevant shareholder resolution. We have obtained authority from our shareholders to allot additional shares for a period of five years from July 18, 2018 (being the date on which the shareholder resolution was passed), which authorization will need to be renewed at least upon expiration (i.e., five years from July 18, 2018) but may be sought more frequently for additional five-year terms (or any shorter period).

Subject to certain limited exceptions, the U.K. Companies Act 2006 generally provides that existing shareholders of a company have statutory pre-emption rights when new shares in such company are allotted and issued for cash. However, it is possible for such statutory pre-emption right to be disapplied by either the articles of association of the company, or by shareholders passing a special resolution at a general meeting, being a resolution passed by at least 75% of the votes cast. Such a disapplication of statutory pre-emption rights may not be for more than five years from the date of adoption of the articles of association, if the disapplication is contained in the articles of association, or from the date of the special resolution, if the disapplication is by special resolution. We have obtained authority from our shareholders to disapply statutory pre-emption rights for a period of five years from July 18, 2018, which disapplication will need to be renewed upon expiration (i.e., at least every five years) to remain effective, but may be sought more frequently for additional five-year terms (or any shorter period).

Subject to certain limited exceptions, the U.K. Companies Act 2006 generally prohibits a public limited company from repurchasing its own shares without the prior approval of its shareholders by ordinary resolution, being a resolution passed by a simple majority of votes cast, and subject to compliance with other statutory formalities. Such authorization may not be for more than five years from the date on which such ordinary resolution is passed. See the section titled “Description of Share Capital.”

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Transfers of shares in Cushman & Wakefield plc outside DTC may be subject to stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax in the U.K., which would increase the cost of dealing in shares in Cushman & Wakefield plc.

On completion of this offering, it is anticipated that the new ordinary shares will be issued to a nominee for The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) and corresponding book-entry interests credited in the facilities of DTC. On the basis of current law and HM Revenue & Customs (“HMRC”) practice, no charges to U.K. stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax (“SDRT”) are expected to arise on the issue of the ordinary shares into DTC’s facilities or on transfers of book-entry interests in ordinary shares within DTC’s facilities and you are strongly encouraged to hold your ordinary shares in book-entry form through the facilities of DTC.

A transfer of title in the ordinary shares from within the DTC clearance system to a purchaser out of the DTC clearance system and any subsequent transfers that occur entirely outside the DTC clearance system, will attract a charge to stamp duty at a rate of 0.5% of any consideration, which is normally payable by the transferee of the ordinary shares. Any such duty must be paid (and the relevant transfer document, if any, stamped by HMRC) before the transfer can be registered in the company books of Cushman & Wakefield plc. However, if those ordinary shares are redeposited into the DTC clearance system, the redeposit will attract stamp duty or SDRT at the rate of 1.5% to be paid by the transferor.

In connection with the completion of this offering, we expect to put in place arrangements to require that Cushman & Wakefield plc’s ordinary shares held in certificated form or otherwise outside the DTC clearance system cannot be transferred into the DTC clearance system until the transferor of the ordinary shares has first delivered the ordinary shares to a depositary specified by us so that stamp duty (or SDRT) may be collected in connection with the initial delivery to the depositary. Any such ordinary shares will be evidenced by a receipt issued by the depositary. Before the transfer can be registered in our books, the transferor will also be required to put the depositary in funds to settle the resultant liability to stamp duty (or SDRT), which will be charged at a rate of 1.5% of the value of the shares.

For further information about the U.K. stamp duty and SDRT implications of holding ordinary shares, please see the section entitled “Taxation—Certain U.K. Tax Considerations” of this prospectus.

Our articles of association to be effective in connection with the closing of this offering will provide that the courts of England and Wales will be the exclusive forum for the resolution of all shareholder complaints other than complaints asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act, and that the U.S. federal district courts will be the exclusive forum for the resolution of any shareholder complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act.

Our articles of association to be effective in connection with the closing of this offering will provide that the courts of England and Wales will be the exclusive forum for resolving all shareholder complaints other than shareholder complaints asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act, and that the U.S. federal district courts will be the exclusive forum for resolving any shareholder complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act, including applicable claims arising out of this offering. This choice of forum provision may limit a shareholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers or other employees, which may discourage such lawsuits. If a court were to find either choice of forum provision contained in our articles of association to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

There has been no prior public market for our ordinary shares and an active, liquid trading market for our ordinary shares may not develop.

Prior to this offering, there has not been a public market for our ordinary shares. We cannot assure you that an active trading market will develop after this offering or how active and liquid that market may become.

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Although we have applied to have our ordinary shares approved for listing on a stock exchange, we do not know whether third parties will find our ordinary shares to be attractive or whether firms will be interested in making a market in our ordinary shares. If an active and liquid trading market does not develop, you may have difficulty selling any of our ordinary shares that you purchase. The initial public offering price for the shares will be determined by negotiations between us and the representatives of the underwriters and may not be indicative of prices that will prevail in the open market following this offering. The market price of our ordinary shares may decline below the initial offering price, and you may not be able to sell your ordinary shares at or above the price you paid in this offering, or at all, and may suffer a loss on your investment.

The market price of our ordinary shares may fluctuate significantly following the offering, our ordinary shares may trade at prices below the initial public offering price, and you could lose all or part of your investment as a result.

The initial public offering price of our ordinary shares has been determined by negotiation between us and the representatives of the underwriters based on a number of factors as further described under “Underwriters” and may not be indicative of prices that will prevail in the open market following completion of this offering. You may not be able to resell your shares at or above the initial public offering price due to a number of factors such as those listed in “—Risks Related to Our Business” and the following, some of which are beyond our control:

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Furthermore, the stock market has from time to time experienced extreme volatility that, in some cases, has been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market and industry fluctuations may adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares, regardless of our actual operating performance. As a result, our ordinary shares may trade at a price significantly below the initial public offering price.

In the past, following periods of market volatility, shareholders have instituted securities class action litigation. If we were involved in securities litigation, it could have a substantial cost and divert resources and the attention of executive management from our business regardless of the outcome of such litigation.

If we or our existing investors sell additional ordinary shares after this offering, the market price of our ordinary shares could decline.

The market price of our ordinary shares could decline as a result of sales of a large number of ordinary shares in the market after this offering, or the perception that such sales could occur. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, also might make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate.

Upon the completion of this offering, we will have 198,209,294 million ordinary shares outstanding, or 204,959,294 million shares if the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares is exercised in full. Of these outstanding ordinary shares, we expect all of the ordinary shares sold in this offering will be freely tradable in the public market. We expect that all of our ordinary shares outstanding prior to the closing of this offering will be restricted securities as defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act (“Rule 144”) and may be sold by the holders into the public market from time to time in accordance with and subject to Rule 144, including, where applicable, limitation on sales by affiliates under Rule 144.

We, our directors, our executive officers and the Principal Shareholders have agreed not to sell or transfer any ordinary shares or securities convertible into, exchangeable for, exercisable for, or repayable with ordinary shares, for 180 days after the date of this prospectus without first obtaining the written consent of Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC. Additionally, the remaining holders of all of our ordinary shares or securities convertible into, exchangeable for, exercisable for, or repayable with ordinary shares, have agreed to substantially similar restrictions contained in their existing management stockholders’ agreements with us.

We expect to enter into a new registration rights agreement with the Principal Shareholders and certain members of our management and our board of directors, which will provide the signatories thereto the right, under certain circumstances, to require us to register their ordinary shares under the Securities Act for sale into the public markets. See the information under the heading “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions—Registration Rights Agreement” for a more detailed description of the registration rights that will be provided to the signatories thereto.

Upon the completion of this offering, we will have 3,343,967 shares and 1,537,662 shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options that vest on time-based and performance-based criteria, respectively, 8,357,725 and 2,470,000 issuable upon vesting of RSUs that vest on time-based and performance-based criteria, respectively, and 10 million shares reserved for future grant under our equity incentive plans. Shares acquired upon the exercise of vested options or RSUs under our equity incentive plans may be sold by holders into the public market from time to

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time, in accordance with and subject to limitation on sales by affiliates under Rule 144. Sales of a substantial number of ordinary shares following the vesting of outstanding equity options or RSUs could cause the market price of our ordinary shares to decline.

Future offerings of debt or equity securities by us may adversely affect the market price of our ordinary shares.

In the future, we may attempt to obtain financing or to further increase our capital resources by issuing additional ordinary shares or offering debt or other equity securities, including commercial paper, medium-term notes, senior or subordinated notes, debt securities convertible into equity or preferred shares. Future acquisitions could require substantial additional capital in excess of cash from operations. We would expect to finance any future acquisitions through a combination of additional issuances of equity, corporate indebtedness, asset-backed acquisition financing and/or cash from operations.

Issuing additional ordinary shares or other equity securities or securities convertible into equity may dilute the economic and voting rights of our existing shareholders or reduce the market price of our ordinary shares or both. Upon liquidation, holders of such debt securities and preferred shares, if issued, and lenders with respect to other borrowings would receive a distribution of our available assets prior to the holders of our ordinary shares. Debt securities convertible into equity could be subject to adjustments in the conversion ratio pursuant to which certain events may increase the number of equity securities issuable upon conversion. Preferred shares, if issued, could have a preference with respect to liquidating distributions or a preference with respect to dividend payments that could limit our ability to pay dividends to the holders of our ordinary shares. Our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, which may adversely affect the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings. Thus, holders of our ordinary shares bear the risk that our future offerings may reduce the market price of our ordinary shares and dilute their shareholdings in us.

Because we do not currently intend to pay cash dividends on our ordinary shares for the foreseeable future, you may not receive any return on investment unless you sell your ordinary shares for a price greater than that which you paid for it.

We currently intend to retain future earnings, if any, for future operation, expansion and debt repayment and do not intend to pay any cash dividends for the foreseeable future. Under English law, any payment of dividends would be subject to relevant legislation and our articles of association, which provide that all dividends must be approved by our board of directors and, in some cases, our shareholders, and may only be paid from our distributable profits available for the purpose, determined on an unconsolidated basis. Any decision to declare and pay dividends in the future will be made at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend on, among other things, our results of operations, financial condition, cash requirements, contractual restrictions, restrictions imposed by applicable law or the SEC and other factors that our board of directors may deem relevant. In addition, our ability to pay dividends may be limited by covenants of any existing and future outstanding indebtedness we or our subsidiaries incur, including our credit agreements. Accordingly, investors must be prepared to rely on sales of their ordinary shares after price appreciation to earn an investment return, which may never occur. Investors seeking cash dividends should not purchase our ordinary shares. As a result, you may not receive any return on an investment in our ordinary shares unless you sell our ordinary shares for a price greater than that which you paid for it.

We are a holding company with nominal net worth and will depend on dividends and distributions from our subsidiaries to pay any dividends.

We are a holding company with nominal net worth. We do not have any assets or conduct any business operations other than our investments in our subsidiaries. Our business operations are conducted primarily out of our indirect operating subsidiary, DTZ Worldwide Limited. As a result, our ability to pay dividends, if any, will be

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dependent upon cash dividends and distributions or other transfers from our subsidiaries. Payments to us by our subsidiaries will be contingent upon their respective earnings and subject to any limitations on the ability of such entities to make payments or other distributions to us. See “—Risks Related to our Business—Our credit agreements impose operating and financial restrictions on us, and in the event of a default, all of our borrowings would become immediately due and payable” for additional information regarding the limitations currently imposed by our credit agreements. In addition, our subsidiaries, including our indirect operating subsidiary, DTZ Worldwide Limited, are separate and distinct legal entities and have no obligation to make any funds available to us.

You will incur immediate and substantial dilution in the net tangible book value of the shares you purchase in this offering.

Prior investors have paid substantially less per share of our ordinary shares than the price in this offering. The initial public offering price of our ordinary shares is substantially higher than the net tangible book deficit per share of our outstanding ordinary shares prior to completion of the offering. Based on our historical adjusted net tangible book deficit per share as of March 31, 2018 of $17.53 per ordinary share and upon the issuance and sale of 45,000,000 ordinary shares by us at an assumed initial public offering price of $17.00 per share (the midpoint of the price range indicated on the cover of this prospectus), if you purchase our ordinary shares in this offering, you will pay more for your shares than the amounts paid by our existing shareholders for their shares and you will suffer immediate dilution of approximately $26.80 per share in net tangible book value, representing the difference between our pro forma net tangible book deficit per share after giving effect to this offering and the assumed initial public offering price per share. We also have a significant number of outstanding equity options to purchase ordinary shares with exercise prices that are below the estimated initial public offering price of our ordinary shares. To the extent that these equity options are exercised, you will experience further dilution. See “Dilution.”

Our internal controls over financial reporting may not be effective and our independent registered public accounting firm may not be able to certify as to their effectiveness, which could have a significant and adverse effect on our business and reputation.

We are not currently required to comply with SEC rules that implement Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and are therefore not required to make a formal assessment of the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting for that purpose. However, at such time as Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is applicable to us, which we expect to occur immediately following effectiveness of this registration statement, we will be required to evaluate our internal controls over financial reporting. At such time, we may identify material weaknesses that we may not be able to remediate in time to meet the applicable deadline imposed upon us for compliance with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (beginning with the second Form 10-K we are required to file following the completion of this offering). In 2015, we identified material weakness in our internal controls over financial reporting resulting from the combination of DTZ, Cassidy Turley and C&W Group and the combination of legacy accounting practices and systems over a highly compressed period of time, which were remediated during our fiscal year ended December 31, 2016. We continue to identify and implement actions to improve the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures, but there can be no assurance that such remediation efforts will be successful. Failure to remediate the material weaknesses could have a negative impact on our business and the market for our ordinary shares.

In addition, if we fail to achieve and maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, as such standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, we may not be able to ensure that we can conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal controls over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We cannot be certain as to the timing of completion of our evaluation, testing and any remediation actions or the impact of the same on our operations. If we are not able to implement the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in a timely manner or with adequate compliance, our independent registered public accounting firm may issue an adverse opinion due to ineffective internal controls over financial reporting and we may be subject to sanctions or investigation by regulatory authorities, such as the SEC. As a

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result, there could be a negative reaction in the financial markets due to a loss of confidence in the reliability of our financial statements. In addition, we may be required to incur costs in improving our internal control system and the hiring of additional personnel. Any such action could have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition.

The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources and distract our management, which could make it difficult to manage our business.

Following the completion of this offering, we will be required to comply with various regulatory and reporting requirements, including those required by the SEC. Complying with these reporting and other regulatory requirements will be time-consuming and will result in increased costs to us and could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

As a public company, we will be subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, and requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. These requirements, along with adopting the new accounting standards for revenue recognition and leasing, may place a strain on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and financial condition. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal controls over financial reporting. To maintain and improve the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, we will need to commit significant resources, hire additional staff and provide additional management oversight. We will be implementing additional procedures and processes for the purpose of addressing the standards and requirements applicable to public companies. Sustaining our growth also will require us to commit additional management, operational and financial resources to identify new professionals to join our firm and to maintain appropriate operational and financial systems to adequately support expansion. These activities may divert management’s attention from other business concerns, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We cannot predict or estimate the amount of additional costs we may incur as a result of becoming a public company or the timing of such costs.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our ordinary share price and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our ordinary shares will depend in part on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. We do not currently have and may never obtain research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of our company, the trading price for our ordinary shares would be negatively impacted. If we obtain securities or industry analyst coverage and if one or more of the analysts who covers us downgrades our ordinary shares or publishes inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our ordinary share price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts ceases coverage of us or fails to publish reports on us regularly, demand for our ordinary shares could decrease, which could cause our ordinary share price and trading volume to decline.

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