The uptrend of listings continued on the Romanian capital market in the first quarter of the year amid a volatile period for international capital markets.
The 7 financing rounds carried out through the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) totaled EUR 428 million: there were 6 bond issues with a cumulative value of EUR 427 million and one equity issue of almost EUR 1 million.
In addition, the first quarter also saw the launch of the first sectoral ETF. The Patria Tradeville Energy ETF aims to replicate the performance of the BET-NG index of the Bucharest Stock Exchange dedicated to the energy and related utilities sector, an important area for the national economy and for investors.
Also in the first quarter, there was a transfer from the AeRO to the Main Market: Safetech Innovations (SAFE), a Romanian cyber security company, present on the capital market since January 2021, debuted on February 6th on the Regulated Market of the BVB under stock symbol SAFE, following the transfer from the AeRO market.
The continuation of the uptrend of listings is even more important as the Romanian stock exchange has reached multiple trading records in the previous years, especially in 2021 and 2022. Moreover, regarding the listing situation in the last 5 years, at BVB there have been 156 financing rounds with a cumulative value of EUR 6.5 billion.
At a general level, the capital market in Romania increased by 3.8% at the end of the January-March period this year, taking into account the evolution of the companies in the composition of the BET-TR index, which also includes dividends.
It can thus be observed a moderation of the growth rate which had exceeded 5.5% at the end of the first two months of this year. Also, the increase recorded at the end of the first quarter occurred against the backdrop of decreasing liquidity.
Zooming in the capital market, several issuers attracted attention in March due to the growth rate they reported. The share price of the BVB issuer, a company listed on its own market, reached an all-time level of RON 47.7 in March.
The BVB share had the biggest increase among the issuers in the BET index: plus 13.5% in a single month.
Radu Hanga, President of the Bucharest Stock Exchange said: „The performance reported in March by BVB as an issuer, namely +13.5%, comes after the share had a yield of 42% last year, including the dividend, and thus obtained the highest growth pace among the companies in the BET index.
The BVB share reached RON 47.7 in March, the highest level since the listing, while simultaneously setting another record high: the BVB issuer had over 3,300 shareholders.
In a broader context, the number of investors in the capital market reached 133,000, a level that represents an all-time high.
Our projects, from the new brand identity, which is fresher and friendlier, to those on increasing the visibility and attractiveness of the capital market as a platform for financing local companies, are elements that add value and have received the appreciation of investors.”
Adrian Tanase, CEO of the Bucharest Stock Exchange said: „The uptrend we witness regarding the continuation of listings of either stocks or bonds on the stock exchange confirms that the capital market is successfully fulfilling its role in the economy.
In the last 5 years, 156 rounds of financing with either equities or bonds were carried out at the BVB, the cumulative value of which topped EUR 6.5 billion.
As the uptrend of listings of financial instruments at the BVB continues, we believe that it is feasible to reach 200,000 investors in the short term, if the pace that we have seen in recent years is maintained, combined with the implementation of the FIDELIS program, the listing of Hidroelectrica, and the simplification of fiscal procedures that is in force since January 1st this year.”
The positive evolution of the capital market comes after a year 2022 marked by volatility and uncertainties. At the level of the Romanian capital market, new all-time highs were recorded last year in terms of total transaction value, average daily liquidity, and number of transactions.
Thus, the Bucharest Stock Exchange reached a new record in 2022 in terms of the total value of transactions carried out on all markets with all types of financial instruments after total transactions exceeded RON 24 billion, up 11% from 2021.
Also, at the level of last year, the average daily trading liquidity for all types of financial instruments listed on the Regulated Market (RM) and the Multilateral Trading System (MTS) increased by 11% and reached RON 95.6 million.
The investors achieved a new record in 2022 in terms of the number of transactions with all types of financial instruments carried out in the RM and MTS: 1.67 million transactions. At the same time, international uncertainties led to a decline of 1.9% for the BET-TR index at the end of last year.
The number of investors in the capital market in Romania continued to grow and reached 133,000 investors at the end of 2022, according to data from the Investor Compensation Fund (FCI).
By comparison, at the end of 2021, there were almost 82,000 investors. This is a 62% increase achieved in a single year. Moreover, the figure of 133,000 investors represents a new all-time high for the capital market in Romania.
The continuation of funding rounds through the BVB is a strong, positive signal and comes after 42 funding rounds were completed on the BVB last year.
The total value of last year’s funding rounds reached EUR 1.9 billion, being very close to the 2021 maximum of EUR 2 billion. The Romanian capital market has outperformed compared to several representative indices.
Over the past 5 years, the companies in the BET-TR index have provided investors with gains of 100%, expressed in the single European currency.
