Nasdaq’s European Markets Delivered Record Year in 2021

NordenBladet – Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ) announced today that Nasdaq´s European markets delivered a historic 2021 with several all-time highs in its listings and trading businesses across the Nordic and Baltic regions.

Solidifying Nasdaq´s Position as Europe´s Premier Listings Hub

The Nasdaq equity markets in Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and the Baltic countries welcomed 219 new equity listings to its markets, including 174 initial public offerings (IPOs), raising a total of EUR 13.5 billion in risk capital. Notable listings include Volvo Cars, the third largest listing in Europe in 2021, which raised EUR 2.1 billion, Storskogen Group (EUR 1.3 billion) and Vivian Group (EUR 720 million).

“In 2021, we saw continued strength in the capital markets with a record number of companies transitioning to public markets. We are proud to be the public market-of-choice for companies and investors alike across the Nordic and Baltic region,” said Adam Kostyál, Head of European Listings at Nasdaq. “The ability to provide many small and medium sized companies active in the region with an international investor base, while also supporting global large cap listings such as Volvo Cars is what makes us unique. We are committed to empowering our community of innovative and entrepreneur-led companies with access to a diverse deep market intelligence, increased visibility and ESG solutions to support their long-term success and growth.”

Record trading volumes drive product expansion and education

Building on the strong momentum in 2020, Nasdaq saw trading volumes in most of its European markets increase in 2021, with share trading increasing 7.1% to a daily average of just under 4 billion Euros across all markets. Nasdaq maintained a market share of 77% of lit and auction trading in its listed shares, while continuing to reinforce its leadership in the Nordic derivatives market, including Norway, where Nasdaq has a achieved a 76% market share in single stock options. Throughout 2021, Nasdaq launched a number of products and services to further support the trading community, including options on the OMXS30 ESG index.

Continuing to lead in ESG through investments and innovation

In 2021, Nasdaq continued to invest in strengthening its environmental, social and governance (ESG) capabilities. In June, Nasdaq acquired a majority stake in Puro.earth, a global marketplace for carbon removal. In 2021, Puro.earth´s trading volumes for CO2 removal certificates (CORCs) increased 361% compared to the year before.

New listings on the Nordic Sustainable Debt Markets grew by 74% compared to 2021 with a record 132 listings. The total volume of bonds listed on the Nordic & Baltic Sustainable Debt Markets was 40 billion EUR by the end of 2021. Sustainable bonds now make up almost a third of the corporate bonds listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. Nasdaq´s data service, Nasdaq Sustainable Bond Network, also continues to expand and now contains data on more than 9400 sustainable bonds from more than 70 countries.

“Nasdaq’s record performance in 2021 is a testament to the strength, vibrancy and innovation in the Nordic and Baltic region, as well as our ability to leverage our technology leadership, marketplace excellence and strong commitment to sustainability to create a capital market offering for both companies and investors that is unparalleled in Europe,” said Bjørn Sibbern, President, European Markets at Nasdaq. “In 2022, we will continue to work together with our clients in order to build onto this momentum and further evolve some of the best performing markets in the world.”

SELECTED 2021 EUROPEAN HIGHLIGHTS

LISTINGS

• Nasdaq welcomed 219 equity new listings (among them 174 initial public offerings), raising a total of EUR 13.5 billion. This is a 209 percent increase from 45 IPOs and 79 listings in 2020. The achievement positions Nasdaq as a leading European exchange operator, with the highest number of listings in the Europe in 2021. A total of 1235 companies are currently listed at Nasdaq in Europe.
• Market by market, Nasdaq Stockholm saw its best year on record, (150 listings) while Nasdaq Helsinki broke its old record from 1999 (28 listings) with a total of 31 listings in 2021. Nasdaq Copenhagen managed 24 IPOs in 2021, making it the best IPO year since 2007.
• Nasdaq Stockholm becomes leading marketplace in the European Union: Nasdaq Stockholm is the single market that has raised the largest amount of capital in the European Union, representing a total of EUR 10.9 billion. Nasdaq Stockholm is also the marketplace that has attracted the most IPOs throughout 2021 within the union, with a total of 111, representing a market of EUR 49 billion.
• Introduction of SPACs, Special Purpose Acquisition Companies: In May 2021, Nasdaq welcomed its first SPAC with the listings of ACQ Bure. Since then, Nasdaq´s European markets have welcomed a total of six SPACs, raising a total of EUR 1 billion.
• European companies listing in the US: During 2021, Nasdaq´s European markets has supported six European companies to list with Nasdaq in the US: Oatly Group AB (OTLY), Olink Holding AB (OLK), Eco Wave Power Global AB (WAVE), Allarity Therapeitics (ALLR), Evaxion Biotech (EVAX) and IO Biotech (IOBT). Additionally, Nasdaq US welcomed 22 SPACs from Europe.

TRADING

• Share trading increased by 7.1 % to a daily average of 3.987bn EUR, compared to 3.723bn EUR in 2020. The average number of trades per business day increased by 5.8 % to 901,009 as compared to 851,810 in 2020.
• Educational efforts to Increase Financial Literacy: Across the Nordics and Baltics, Nasdaq has initiated programs and collaborations to support financial literacy, investor protection and financial inclusion. The financial literacy initiative involves partnerships and initiatives with third party organizations that seek to equip retail investors of all backgrounds and ages with the knowledge and skills to manage their money effectively. The various projects include sharing knowledge about Social Media’s impact in the stock market, developing of investment apps educating children and arranging webinars on savings, trading and investments.
• Nasdaq signed a deal with Swedish fintech company Sequitor to produce an exchange system simulation service based on Sequitor technology. The service gives customers access to full-scale, high-performance replicas of exchange test systems to offer Nasdaq´s global clients better tools for understanding and optimizing their system performance in private sessions, allowing for repeatable replay, which leads to reduced risk and potentially lowering testing costs.

SUSTAINABILITY

• In November, Nasdaq launched options on its OMXS30 ESG Index. With the new contracts, Nasdaq’s European ESG derivatives offering now includes both options and futures contracts based on the world´s first ESG benchmark index, which has grown into one of the most traded ESG indexes in Europe since its launch in 2018.
• In fall, Nasdaq launched Green Designations to support increased visibility and transparency for companies toward investors looking for sustainable investments.