Egm and listed SMEs, Assonext's proposals for revitalisation
The association presented a roadmap with 12 proposals to make the market more efficient and competitive
Euronext Growth Milan, the segment of the Italian stock exchange designed for small and medium-sized enterprises, has become a reference point, tripling the number of issuers since 2015 and showing a higher tech vocation than the main list, but continues to struggle to 'guarantee liquidity, visibility and continuity in access to capital for listed SMEs'. This is the analysis of AssoNext (the association of reference for listed Italian SMEs), which has drawn up a roadmap with 12 proposals aiming at a more efficient and competitive market, a greater channelling of savings towards SMEs, and a strengthening of the visibility of SMEs vis-à-vis investors. The proposed roadmap, which was presented in Rome during a public event, is developed along three lines: a more efficient and competitive market (Fair Market), greater channelling of savings towards listed SMEs (Patient Finance), and a strengthening of SMEs' visibility vis-à-vis investors (Equity Visibility).
While there are 207 companies listed on Egm with a total capitalisation of EUR 10.8 billion and the market has grown a lot over the last 10 years, on the other hand, the index's performance has been less exposed to turbulence than the main listings but has been less brilliant (+9% in 2025 compared to +31.5% of the Ftse Mib; +3% in the first part of 2026 compared to +12% of the Ftse Mib) and trading liquidity has been 'insufficient'.
'It is not enough to encourage new listings,' emphasises Vincenzo Polidoro, president of AssoNext and executive director of First Capital, 'we need to build an ecosystem that will retain and enhance them over time. The operational proposals we are presenting today arise precisely from this awareness: a concrete plan to put SMEs back at the centre of the country's industrial policy and to make the capital market a real lever of growth, competitiveness and economic sovereignty'.
On the fundamentals front, 2026 valuations stand at EV/Ebitda multiples of 5.8x and P/E of 13.6x, with a sector composition that sees a significant presence of industrials (41%), consumer goods (17%) and tech (11%): a more diversified mix with greater technology exposure than the main market. The shadow of still insufficient liquidity remains - average daily trades stood at €7m, down 12.5% from the 2025 average - and in the last thirty months IPOs have continued to outperform delistings, albeit with a narrowing gap.
"The EGM maintains an average pace of 20-25 listings per year and continues to play a fundamental role in the dissemination of a capital culture among Italian SMEs," explains Guglielmo Manetti, Managing Director of Intermonte and Assonext Director. The fundamentals are solid and the valuations attractive, but the criticality remains on trading volumes and the still limited presence of institutional investors: issues on which decisive action must be taken to unleash the sector's true potential'
