Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 5 October 2023
121. Deputy Pearse Doherty asked the Minister for Finance his views, and his Department's analysis, of the recent departure of companies from Euronext Dublin; the causes of these departures and potential policy measures to support the Irish stock exchange; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43139/23]
View answerOver the years, companies have delisted from the Irish Stock Exchange for various commercial reasons. Regarding recent announcements, I have taken note of these developments and my officials have engaged with Euronext Dublin on this and related matters and beyond that it would not be appropriate for me to comment on individual commercial decision-making of specific companies.However, it is clear that public equity markets in Europe, including Ireland, have been facing significant challenges over the last decade due to a variety of overlapping reasons. Competition from private equity and from more liquid US capital markets are material factors in this context. The increasing importance of large stock market indices linked to the rise in passive investment strategies has also been a pull factor in listings activity gravitating towards the largest stock exchanges. As such EU solutions will need to be found to address the common challenges faced by EU exchanges.In this regard the EU Capital Markets Union Plan seeks to promote companies’ access to public equity markets through various measures, such as the establishment of EU markets infrastructure, reforms to listings rules, measures designed to increase retail investor participation in capital markets and to promote SME investment research. Ireland is a strong supporter of the CMU Action Plan and is actively involved in its development, including measures specifically designed to promote companies seeking to access funding through Initial Public Offerings (IPOs).The recent political agreement on the review of the Markets in Financial Instruments Regulation provides for the establishment of a European consolidated tape. Unlike the EU, the USA has had a consolidated tape since the 1970’s, which has significantly helped their capital markets develop. This tape will bring together the prices and volumes of financial instruments, such as shares and bonds, from hundreds of execution venues across all Member States into a single stream of information, equally accessible for everybody. The tape will enable both retail and institutional investors to have a reliable and transparent view of prices and liquidity in one centralised place, improving their ability to assess whether they have achieved best execution outcomes.Another pertinent CMU initiative currently under negotiation is the Listings Package, which aims to advance the CMU project by supporting improved access to market-based sources of financing for EU companies (particularly smaller firms such as those listed on SME Growth Markets). Key elements of the package include the introduction of simpler prospectus rules and more proportionate market abuse rules, provisions to allow companies use multiple vote share structures thereby retaining control of the original owners’ vision while accessing public markets, as well as measures to enhance the production and distribution of investment research on midcaps and SMEs. The Listing Review reached council general agreement in June.Finally, I would note that Euronext Dublin remains a global and group centre of excellence for debt and fund listings, supporting companies and investors active in the capital markets and recently conducted a study on Irish equity capital markets.
