On January 21, the Vienna Stock Exchange (VSE) has released its new market segmentation “direct market plus” and “direct market”. These two segments have replaced the former “mid market” as well as the “other securities” market. The basic segment is the direct market where 23 stocks are traded currently. The new direct market plus segment comprises four securities formerly listed at the mid market and four entirely new securities. The new markets offer a listing facility for small-to-medium enterprises (SME) and up-and-coming young companies.
For both segments, two trading forms are offered:
- continuous trading between 9:00 am and 5:30 am
- single intraday auction with price determination around 1:30 pm.
with the activity of a market maker as prerequisite for continuous trading in order to ensure price determination.
The change became possible with the amendment of the Austrian Stock Corporation Act (Aktiengesetz) which has been enacted at the beginning of 2019 and should grant easy access to the capital market for small to medium-sized companies due to the less strict listing requirements.The segment direct market is the one with the lowest requirements while the direct market plus demands a minimum period of existence of one year, the publication of annual financial statements and half-year interim reports, the maintenance of a financial calendar and usage of a capital market coach.