Despite the Corona crisis, according to a study, more companies worldwide dared to enter the stock market this year than 2019. The number of IPOs rose by 12 percent to 1322, according to an evaluation published on Tuesday by the consulting and auditing company EY. The global issue volume climbed by 26 percent to 263 billion dollars and thus to the highest value since 2010. However, only German companies dared to enter the trading floor.

A lot of money in the market “At first glance it seems absurd that in such a difficult year as 2020 IPOs are booming, “said EY expert Martin Steinbach. An important driver is still the “enormously high liquidity that is in the market and is looking for investment opportunities.” The pandemic also led to a surge in digitization, from which IPOs of technology companies would have benefited.

According to the information, 33 Percentage of global issue proceeds from IPOs of technology companies that 24 made up percent of all transactions. In second place were IPOs (Initial Public Offering) by companies from the healthcare sector.

There was a spirit of optimism, especially in the USA and China. The issue volume in the United States increased by 69 percent to 86 Billion dollars. The number of transactions climbed by 32 percent to 222. China – including Hong Kong – recorded a growth in issuance volume of 51 percent to 116 Billion dollars, the number of IPOs increased 41 percent to 514 to. The world’s largest IPO was therefore that of the Chinese chip manufacturer Semiconductor Manufacturing International with 7.6 billion dollars. The company is now in trouble.

Headwind in Germany In Germany, EY still sees room for improvement. According to the information, twelve companies found their way onto the stock market in various ways. Of these, nine went public in Frankfurt and raised a total of 1.1 billion euros. Three companies decided to go public in New York. Among them was the Tübingen biotech company Curevac, which is working on a corona vaccine.

“The German IPO market had to contend with headwinds in the first half of the year,” Steinbach explained. Because of the price fluctuations at the beginning of the pandemic, some companies have put their stock market plans on hold for the time being. Activities picked up again in the second half of the year. However, IPOs have hardly played a role in Germany for years. Many companies traditionally prefer to finance themselves through loans from their house banks or issue bonds.

(mho)