The Ministry of Economy is ready to support only the poorest strata of innovative companies

High-tech companies, when entering the stock exchange, can now return up to 50% of all placement costs (audit, payment for brokerage services, etc.), but in the amount of no more than 5 million rubles—this is the initiative taken by the Ministry of Economy. The department has also decided who should be considered innovative public companies, operations with securities of which are subject to a zero income rate - so far these are eight companies whose standard daily total turnover on shares does not exceed 7-10 million rubles.

As Natalya Larionova, director of the department for the development of small and medium-sized enterprises of the Ministry of Economy, told Kommersant, the ministry has prepared a number of proposals to support IPOs of innovative companies and included them in the draft order on financial support for small companies that is being developed. In particular, it is proposed to introduce a 50 percent budget subsidy to cover costs associated with the placement: for the preparation of issue documents for state registration, for payment of brokerage services, for auditing and preparation of financial statements according to IFRS standards, for payment for the services of the stock exchange and depository. At the same time, the total amount of subsidies to compensate for expenses should not exceed 5 million rubles, notes Ms. Larionova. “We are talking about providing direct financial support, that is, funds will be transferred to the company’s accounts,” she added.

In addition, the Ministry of Economy has determined who exactly will be subject to the zero tax rate on income from transactions with securities of high-tech companies from January 1. According to the relevant draft government decree (“On approval of the procedure for classifying shares of Russian organizations traded on the organized securities market as shares of the high-tech (innovative) sector of the economy”), the tax benefit applies to companies trading in the special sector of the stock exchange.

Today there is only one such platform on the market - the Innovation and Investment Market on the MICEX for medium and small capitalization companies. It includes three segments: the sector of innovative and growing companies (IRC, capitalization criterion is no more than 15 billion rubles, the issuer has access to all types of investors carrying out transactions on the MICEX and instruments), the IRC-2 sector (use of exchange listing in a special mode of negotiated transactions for qualified investors) and over-the-counter placement.

Major transactions with “innovative” securities are now taking place only on the IRC. The sector trades shares of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies (Human Stem Cell Institute (HSCI), Pharmsintez, Diode), the chemical holding NEKK, IT and industrial developers (Armada, Russian Navigation Technologies (RNT), Donskoy Plant radio components), as well as the O2TV channel.

There is no talk yet about stable demand from investors for high technologies: for example, on Thursday there were no transactions with RNT securities at all, with NEKK - for 300 thousand rubles, with Diod - for 400 thousand rubles, the maximum - 7 million rubles - with O2TV securities. Most of the securities have fallen in price since the placement (for Diod - by 40%, for RNT - by 10%, for Pharmsintez - by 11%). “Excited demand and, accordingly, an increase in quotations is usually observed only in the first days of placement,” notes one of the placement agents working with IRC. “But, unfortunately, Russian companies cannot subsequently provide investors with growth in securities, and we have not yet “At least some analogue is emerging, for example, the AIM (Alternative investments market) sector on the LSE.” For example, in December 2009, HSCI placed 20% of the shares of the increased authorized capital (or 15 million shares) at a price of 9.5 rubles. for paper. During the first week of trading, the cost of one share increased more than 2.5 times - to 24.6 rubles, and the total volume of transactions for the week exceeded 70.1 million securities. Now the securities are trading at around 12 rubles. per share. In addition, as Kommersant’s interlocutor concludes, domestic high technology is “too long-term and a high-risk project,” so even such tax benefits “can’t really attract investors here.”

Irina Parfentyeva

Wealth does not suit a modernizer