A woman runs between empty plates put on the floor during a protest against the government's restriction measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 in front of the Milan Stock exchange, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Oct. 31, 2020. - AP
MILAN: What a difference a year makes. After Milan finished 2019 as Europe’s top venue for new listings, highlighting Italy’s wide array of family-owned micro businesses, the market for IPOs in the country cratered this year as investors shied away during the pandemic.
Following a year that saw 35 initial public offerings (IPOs) worth US$2.9bil, only 15 companies have gone public in Milan in 2020, raising just US$745mil, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Even with three IPOs underway, Italy is behind the UK, Sweden and Norway in number of deals.
Win a prize this Mother's Day by subscribing to our annual plan now! T&C applies.
