Frankfurt, 9 November 2009. Deutsche Börse and KfW Bankengruppe have opened the 13th German Equity Forum in Frankfurt am Main. The capital market conference runs from 9 – 11 November, and is the largest information and networking platform in Europe for companies seeking equity capital.
“Equity has never been more important,” said Reto Francioni, CEO of Deutsche Börse at the opening of the Fall Forum 2009. “The issue of equity supplied via the stock exchange is moving slowly but surely into the spotlight. The large number of participants this year alone shows the great interest in the primary market.”
Ulrich Schröder, Chairman of the Board of Managing Directors of KfW Bankengruppe had this to say at the opening of the forum, “Innovations are particularly important if we are to overcome this financial and economic crisis as quickly as possible. They are the key driving force behind economic growth. Companies have to find support in this respect and thus need a functioning market.”
The Equity Forum offers panel discussions, presentations and workshops on corporate financing and capital market regulation. International companies from China, India, Belarus and the Ukraine will introduce themselves in country forums. Some 200 listed companies will be presenting their current financial figures at investor and analyst conferences. The event also includes presentations by the top 25 non-listed high-growth companies from the Alternative Energies, Life Science, Consumer & E-Commerce, High Technology and Software & Internet sectors to a broad group of investors. The forum is expected to attract 5,000 attendees.
Leading global market organizer Deutsche Börse and development bank KfW have been organizing the German Equity Forum, held twice a year, since 1996. The fall event focuses on listed companies and those in later-stage financing, while the primary focus of the spring forum is on early-stage and growth companies.