“Romania IPO market continues to grow, despite a challenging global environment for stock listings. 2023 brought the biggest IPO deal so far in Romania with the successful listing of Hidroelectrica, the country’s main electricity producer, which raised $2.1 billion in the stock offering and got a market capitalization of above $10 billion. Moreover, Hidroelectrica offering has been one of the largest European IPOs of the year and is a clear indication of investors’ confidence in Romania’s market,” stated Iulia Bratu, Partner, Head of Lead Advisory, EY Romania.
The global IPO market ended 2023 with 1,298 IPOs, which have raised $132.2 billion. Against 2022, sums generated from IPOs in 2023 were around one third behind the pace of last year, though deal volumes rose both in the region of the Americas and in the EMEIA region, in line with the EY Global IPO Trends 2023 survey.
“We remain extremely upbeat with regard to our outlooks for Romania capital markets,” added Iulia Bratu.
Globally, inflation slowdown and the possible interest rate reduction starting 2024 are likely to draw investors again to IPOs, by improving liquidity and return perspectives. Nevertheless, the sustained geopolitical instability is likely to undermine confidence.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)