Italy is a country endowed with considerable entrepreneurial vitality, so much so that the number of small and medium-sized Italian enterprises in 2015 returned to an increase after five years, exceeding 137.000 units (Cerved data). To encourage the growth of SMEs, the engine of the real economy, through effective support from the financial markets, an important contribution can come from new financial instruments such as Individual Savings Plans (PIR) and Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) .
The Individual Savings Plans, aimed at private savings and households, should be able to channel flows equal to 3 billion euros, while the SPACs, vehicles that concentrate institutional investments, have already achieved funding of approximately 1 billion euros. This is what emerged from the conference organized by Assosim, the association that brings together the intermediaries of the financial markets, dedicated to "Finance for the growth of SMEs", which saw the interventions of Marco Graffigna, Head of Equity Capital Markets of Banca IMI, Francesco Perilli Chief Executive Officer of Equita SIM and Marco Turrina Chief Executive Officer of Banca Akros, and the conclusions of Fabrizio Pagani, Head of the Technical Secretariat of the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
“We warmly welcome the birth of PIRs and the development of SPACs, which we have been hoping for for some time. In fact, we believe that these tools can trigger a virtuous cycle capable of channeling a significant flow of resources to Italian SMEs with the benefit of providing them with greater liquidity and easier access to the Italian financial market", said Michele Calzolari, Chairman by Assosim.
Marco Graffigna, Head of Equity Capital Markets of Banca IMI also expressed the same line: “In the period 2013-2016, the IPO market in Italy saw the listing of 18 new companies, 13 of which with a capitalization of less than one billion of Euro. Borsa Italiana has also encouraged the access of new SMEs to the market through the establishment of the Elite programme, which to date sees the participation of 460 companies. However, the aspect of the scarce liquidity of the securities of listed SMEs still needs to be improved, which can be implemented by favoring the development of the asset management industry and the access of institutional investors to the primary and secondary markets”.
According to Marco Turrina, CEO of Banca Akros, “the growth of SMEs is today the real priority for our country; in this context, the financial industry is called upon to play an essential role in channeling household savings towards productive activities, also in full harmony with the objectives of the Capital Markets Union promoted by the European institutions. The SPACs and the success of the most recent fund raising and business combination operations carried out represent a clear example of how financial innovation can be usefully addressed in designing transparent and protective investment tools for investors and flexible towards entrepreneurs , as well as more respectful of the specific governance needs of SMEs compared to other operators present on the private capital market".
Furthermore, according to Francesco Perilli, CEO of Equita Sim, "Individual Savings Plans are a great idea, which offers institutional and private investors an investment tool with significant potential in terms of returns and companies a funding channel that is always open".
The PIRs, whose regulation is contained in the Stability Law currently being approved, are instruments aimed at encouraging investments in SMEs thanks to tax incentives (zeroing income tax and other benefits) on condition that they are kept for at least five years with a ceiling of 150.000 euros. Forms of incentives of this type are already being adopted in France and the United Kingdom with the plan d'epargne and the individual savings accounts.
SPACs are financial vehicles which – on the basis of the promoters' initiative – raise resources from investors and are listed on the Stock Exchange to then identify a target company within a couple of years which merges with the vehicle and is automatically listed. The objective in this case is that the savings, managed in a professional manner, are directed towards the medium-sized companies of excellence. There are currently eight SPACs operating on the Italian market.
