Second-tier markets study on European Innovation Monitoring System
The fifth study under the European Innovation Monitoring System (EIMS) initiative of the SPRINT programme has just been published. Entitled "European second-tier markets for NTBFs (new technology based firms)", this study makes a timely and important contribution to second-tier markets in the European Union. Second-tier markets fill the gap between the Official List of the Stock Exchange and the non-regulated, informal placings markets where companies, venture capitalists and individuals buy and sell equity shares with or without intermediaries. Second-tier markets do not play as large a role in financing innovative companies as the markets in the United States. Stock markets for fast growing companies are a key element in the chain of financing mechanisms for innovative growth, which in turn are essential for the competitiveness and the development of the European economy. This study breaks new ground by relating activities in these markets to the structure of capital markets in general, as well as specifying the organization and operation of the markets and the attitudes and motivations of issuers, intermediaries and investors.