Funding channelled via the stock market grew 6-fold to April, BME highlights during the opening of the MedCap Forum
- There were over 800 connections via streaming on the first day of the Medcap Forum, which reaches its seventeenth edition, featuring more than 230 investors and 100 companies.
- The Secretary of State for the Economy stresses the resilience of the Spanish economy and the importance of public-private collaboration
- Several of Spain's leading equity managers highlight the attractiveness of small and medium-sized companies for portfolio diversification
The seventeenth edition of the Medcap Forum got underway today. It features more than 230 investors, of which roughly half of them are international, and a hundred companies, which will hold more than 1,500 private meetings over the next three days. On the first day of the event there were more than 800 connections via streaming. The benchmark meeting for small and mid-cap companies featured four panels that focused on the current situation of Spanish companies and the Spanish economy.
Javier Hernani, CEO of BME, led the opening of the event. He stressed that "in the first four months of 2021, flows channelled into equities, including IPOs and capital increases, already exceeded 18 billion euros, which is six times as much as during the same period in 2020 and equal to the figure for that year as a whole". The Fixed Income volume issued so far this year, "already exceeds 165 billion euros, of which more than 50 billion corresponds to corporate debt, a year-on-year increase of 23%", he added.
The Secretary of State for Economy, Gonzalo García Andrés, was the special guest at the opening ceremony. In his speech, he highlighted the resilience of the Spanish economy, the importance of public-private collaboration and the support for the Capital Markets Union, which is particularly relevant for small and medium-sized enterprises. Fernando Ruiz, Chairman of Deloitte, highlighted the importance of the European SME Growth market seal received by BME Growth.
Javier Hernani moderated the first panel of the day, entitled "New environment, new challenges for Spanish companies", which brought together Pedro Guerrero, Chairman of Bankinter; Juan López Belmonte, CEO of Laboratorios Rovi and Santiago de Torres, Chairman of Atrys Health.
All of them agreed on the advantages of being a listed company, such as access to new investors, the reputation it offers and the possibility of financing growth. They also highlighted the importance of sustainability.
The round table "Competitiveness and productivity in the new business scenario", moderated by Javier Garrido, Deputy Head of BME's Research Department, and pointed out that events such as this Forum favour the growth of Spanish companies. Alex Fuste, Chief Economist at Andbank; Camilo Ulloa, Chief Economist, Spain at BBVA, and Santiago Carbó, Head of Financial Studies at Funcas, shared their views on the outlook for the Spanish business sector and the economy. The speakers explained how digitisation and research will be a key factor in the post-Covid-19 recovery, which is on the horizon thanks to the progress made in the vaccination process.
Two other panels were held in the afternoon. The first, moderated by Víctor Peiró, Head of Research at GVA Gaesco, was dedicated to renewable energy. Representatives from Audax, Greenalia and Soltec explained how, far from being a fad, renewable energy is here to stay. They also discussed the possibilities to diversify risk in this sector and the advantages that renewables offer consumers.
The last panel of the day, moderated by Javier Fernández-Galiano, Head of Financial Advisory at Deloitte, was devoted to investing in small and mid-cap companies, and gathered the views on this market of Fidelity, Renta 4, Santander AM and Mutuactivos. The speakers, several of the best Spanish equity managers, agreed on the attractiveness of small and mid-cap companies, where they see potential even after the latest revaluations. They also stressed that it is more important than ever to choose the sectors that can benefit the most from the post-Covid-19 reopening and recovery, such as tourism, industry and leisure.
Tomorrow's panels will focus on alternative public-private financing, opportunities for issuers and investors in the Fixed Income market, ESG investments and REITs as an attractive investment alternative.
You can find more information about the Medcap Forum at:
https://www.foromedcap.es/ing/Home.
The photos of the event are available here:
