Euronext exchanges to extend focus on needs of the Dutch SMEs
Amsterdam - 9 April 2014– Euronext, a wholly owned subsidiary of IntercontinentalExchange Group (NYSE: ICE), today announced that, following a strategic review, it will wind down Alternext 1 Amsterdam by the end of the year, or as soon as possible thereafter.
Euronext will consult with the issuers of the two companies and two bonds currently listed on Alternext Amsterdam to discuss a potential move to Euronext Amsterdam or to other Euronext markets.
Since its creation in 2006 four companies have listed on Alternext Amsterdam and more than fifty have listed on Euronext Amsterdam. Market participants in Amsterdam have demonstrated a clear preference for the regulated Euronext market.
Anne Louise Metz, Head of Listings of Euronext Amsterdam, said: “The Dutch financial community has demonstrated its preference for listings on a regulated market. We have therefore decided to focus on initiatives for Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that are more aligned with the Dutch eco-system and investment practices.”
Among the initiatives for SMEs which will be the focus of Euronext Amsterdam’s approach are EnterNext and the Dutch Entrepreneurs fund (NL Ondernemingsfonds), recently initiated by the Amsterdam exchange. NL Ondernemingsfonds is a joint market initiative in which Dutch banks, pension providers and an asset manager joined forces to provide financing for businesses in the Netherlands. The fund will issue its first loans this year.
Launched last year, EnterNext is a Euronext subsidiary whose sole focus is ensuring that small companies are better able to make better use of the exchange and facilitating access to the capital markets. Via EnterNext, Euronextacts as a trusted advisor tosmall listed companies and is actively engaged in promoting the market to investors and potential new issuers.
1. Alternext is a multilateral trading facility operated in Belgium, France, Portugal and the Netherlands offering small- and mid-sized companies easier access to capital markets with fewer obligations and a lighter regulatory regime compared to Euronext’s regulated markets