At the fifth edition of the ZF Capital Market Summit, organized by Ziarul Financiar, Banca Transilvania Financial Group was represented by three delegates.

The growth prospects for the BET index were analyzed by Aurel Bernat, Executive Director of Financial Institutions & Investor Relations at Banca Transilvania. Fidelis government bonds and the profile of investors supporting Romanian government financing were examined by Daniela Secară, CEO of BT Partners, while Dan Dascăl, CEO of BT Asset Management, offered a broader perspective on the markets.

Aurel Bernat

Executive Director of Financial Institutions & Investor Relations, Banca Transilvania

• If we look at the local market, I would say it is attractive. Looking at the region, we are at a P/E multiple of around 9, and compared to the Czech Republic and other countries in our region, we are talking about double-digit figures. From this perspective, the Romanian market is attractive, all the more so because it has exposure to the banking sector—which, if the country is heading in the right direction, is the best possible investment proxy—and to the energy and utilities sectors. Very briefly, looking at Romania, if we manage to maintain predictable political behavior and a strong country brand—from the perspective of listed companies and public discourse toward international institutional investors—we have a clear opportunity for future growth.
  
  
• For years we’ve been talking about investments and investors, but we were speaking from an institutional perspective. Globally, we’re seeing that the regular individual investor is truly beginning to prove their worth, because those who invest regularly also provide investment capital for institutional investors, such as investment funds. Today, if we look at the local market, investment funds are competing with pension funds, which traditionally were the buyers. We have two types of investors: some have allocated capital behind them, while others have funds transferred through the trust of small retail investors in these investments.
  
  
• Over the past six years, we’ve seen every possible form of irrationality—from COVID to wars. Yet the market seems to have held up remarkably well. Probably because it’s the most liquid. There is a growing confidence that we are no longer in a “Too big to fail” scenario, but rather a “Very big to succeed” one. The better positioned you are in the market, the more market share you can capture, the more long-term stability you achieve, and that’s when investors gain confidence.
  
  
• We are an investor, an issuer, and an intermediary. We believe in the capital market and have done so ever since our initial public offering. We can share our best practices in issuer relations with other smaller players who wish to go public or issue bonds.
  
  
• In the pensions and investment funds sector, we are seeing extremely high adoption rates, particularly due to electronic systems—that “one-click” convenience is essential for retail customers, and this translates into hundreds of thousands of customers annually.
  
  
• The greatest risk is the risk of lacking courage. The second would be the risk of not speaking well of our country. Right now, when the Middle East is facing problems, it is easiest to attract investors, because we are becoming an oasis of calm in Eastern Europe. If we’ve resolved the first two issues, then what remains are the global geopolitical context and internal stability. But, most importantly, let’s not forget the first rule: let’s be courageous.

Daniela Secară

CEO of BT Capital Partners

• For many investors, Fidelis is often their first exposure to the capital markets, but we are gradually seeing that about 10% of Fidelis investors are also looking into and investing in other opportunities—perhaps in ETFs or initial public offerings.
  
  
• One encouraging trend we’ve noticed in recent years is that Fidelis investors are gradually shifting toward the stock market. We don’t see them investing in risky stocks.
  
  
• The largest percentage of Fidelis investors consists of people over 50, followed by those between 45 and 50. We are indeed seeing growth in the other age groups as well, but it is fairly limited.
  
  
• It depends heavily on market trends, but young people mainly focus on trading in international markets. These are names they’ve heard of. They’re products they use, and many investment decisions stem from a desire to buy shares in the companies or products they use.
• Ultimately, investing in Fidelis can be a way for young people to allocate a portion of their funds—that is, to invest a percentage of their portfolio in a very low-risk asset.
  
  
• We need to keep in mind that we started Fidelis with two episodes, then moved up to four to six episodes a year, and now we have a new episode of Fidelis every month. Whether or not investors have lost interest, we’ll see at the end of the year when the funds raised become available.

Dan Dascăl

CEO of BT Asset Management

• Pension funds receive substantial inflows every month and therefore need places to invest their capital; this is yet another compelling reason why more and more companies are going public.
  
  
• We, the Romanian investment fund industry, are also seeing increasing inflows into local equity funds. It’s very easy to invest in an equity fund these days, and of course we want to have as many opportunities as possible to diversify these investments.
  
  
• To attract as many companies as possible to list on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, we are primarily talking about a combination of factors: (1) interest on the part of issuers, (2) the willingness of brokers to explain the benefits of listing to companies, and (3) the authorities’ desire to list state-owned companies.
  
  
• In recent years, we have witnessed changes in investor behavior, not only in Romania but around the world. The role that retail investors play—through their collective investments—in the performance of stock markets, both directly and indirectly, has become increasingly significant.
  
  
• The economic downturn was partly due to a decline in consumption, which is not necessarily a bad thing, as it has helped restore balance to Romania’s economy—a development that is beneficial for the performance of government bonds.
  
  
• I’m an optimistic person by nature, and ultimately, our industry is built on optimism. The entire financial system relies on investor confidence. People entrust us with their money to manage because they trust us. Although there have been three periods of major volatility in Romania in recent years, the overall return on investments in the stock markets is very good. And even if such periods occur, ultimately the context of economic growth will remain upward.