INVESTORS' FORUM - 2024 The development of the stock market after the listing of Hidroelectrica- the main challenge of our capital market

Our capital market has known, in recent years and especially recently with the listing of Hidroelectrica, a series of transformations, including the increase in the number and diversification of the categories of issuers that call on market mechanisms for financing, the increase in the number of investors and somewhat more visibility, according to the opinions expressed during the conference "Investor Forum - 2024: Challenges and opportunities of the year", organized yesterday by the newspaper BURSA.

Now, the main challenge is to identify and implement measures that allow the market to continue developing, so that it offers investors more solutions for placing financial resources and the market truly becomes a channel for financing the economy.

Alin Marius Andries, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Finance emphasized that, with the issuance and trading of government bonds, the capital market has become increasingly important for the MFP. "From our perspective, the financial system as a whole, both from the point of view of the level of development and from the perspective of the efficiency of the way financial intermediation is carried out, constitutes a premise for economic development, because the central objective of the Romanian Government is sustainable economic growth which it translates into investments, better jobs and a higher standard of living", said Alin Andries.

Florin Spătaru, State Counselor at the Chancellery of the Prime Minister emphasized that, last year, the bar at the Bucharest Stock Exchange was raised a lot, but that it is necessary to maintain the level. "It's a big responsibility for everything that the financial sector means (...) Romania has potential, but we have to work a lot", said the state councilor. From his point of view, there are two major country goals that must be achieved - entry into the Schengen Area and accession to the OECD, which create opportunities and lead to the taking of "unpopular" measures.

Gabriel Ţecheră, Director of Corporate Governance and Investor Relations within Transport Trade Services, is of the opinion that, after the listing of Hidroelectrica, which brought a positive image to our country, a solution for continuing the development of the capital market is to reduce the state's participation in listed companies. "In my opinion, there is a lot of talk about the listing of new companies, but I think that a simpler and more accessible solution for the state is to reduce the shares in already listed companies. The state, normally, should retain its control, without discussion. Control can be maintained with 50%, so these are percentages that are easy to put on the market. Imagine what the capital market would look like from now on if every year there were a package - two for sale from listed companies", said Gabriel Ţecheră.

Dan Popovici, the general director of OTP Asset Management, pointed out that, when people retire, they will have to have an additional source of income, and the capital market has so far proven to be the easiest form of to achieve "smart saving", which protects against inflation. "I think that, on the one hand, it is very important to increase the number of investors on the stock market, but I think it is even more important to increase the number of people who bother to invest. In fact, we need to raise the level of awareness of the fact that when we retire, the state pension will not be enough. Even if there is Pillar 1, Pillar 2, Pillar 3, we will have to have something extra - a "wealth" that will finance us for a better life when we are out of business", said Dan Popovici.

Regarding the number of investors, Cosmin Păunescu, Head of the Prudential Supervision Service, Financial Supervisory Authority (ASF), pointed out that at the end of last year there were around 180,000 investors at the BSE, according to reports from the Investor Compensation Fund, an increase compared to the 120,000 investors reported the previous year. "About 20% are investors in state securities and about 15,000 investors entered with the listing of Hidroelectrica", said the ASF official.

According to him, the number of active investors, those who make at least one trade every six months, was 80,000 at the end of last year, compared to 40,000 investors in 2022.

Ioana Birta, CFO of the TeraPlast group, stated that there is a positive trend regarding infrastructure works, which started in the second half of last year and which, according to investors, will be maintained until the end of the current year.

"We expect 2024 to be a good year in terms of infrastructure investments. 70% of TeraPlast group's business is related to infrastructure projects: water, sewage, natural gas. In the second half of 2023, a positive trend regarding infrastructure works started and we expect it to continue during 2024. We also expect a stabilization of the costs of construction materials, a slight decrease in the costs of energy and to a slight decrease in interest rates in the second part of the year", said Ioana Birta.

Nicolae Tudor, Director, Head of Sales & Trading, Goldring, drew attention to the opportunities and challenges that the current geopolitical context can have on the economy. In his opinion, the current nationalistic trend at the global level can influence the business environment, because investors are more likely to promote domestic businesses.