The Italian Stock Exchange has been one of Europe's most lively during the previous three years. Between 2021 and 2023, 114 firms went public, raising approximately $6.7 billion. In 2009, there were 297 listed companies; now there are 429. The snapshot at the end of 2023 depicts a more crowded Piazza Affari than ever before. However, a balance sheet can be misleading since, although small and medium-sized businesses were flocking to the EGM market in great numbers, several large companies exited the main market, taking with them more than $60 billion in capitalization. In the last two years, 44 companies have said goodbye to Borsa Italiana, often returning to private hands with the help of private equity funds (Atlantia, Falck Renewables, Cerved), and sometimes moving to listings in other countries (Exor, Autogrill, CNH Industrial). Thus, the income-to-expenditure balance is favorable numerically but negative in financial terms. Despite the Ftse Mib's record gain in 2023, Piazza Affari's capitalization is worth 762 billion, or about 40% of Italian GDP (it was 51% in 2006), compared to 3,600 billion on the Paris Stock Exchange (approximately 130% of GDP) and 1,400 in Amsterdam (more than 140% of GDP). The current makeup of the Stock Exchange reflects the Italian industrial fabric, which is dominated by small and medium-sized businesses; there are few multinationals in the country.
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