The Vienna Stock Exchange experienced a significant rise in equity turnover and a record high in debt listings during 2024, the organisation has said.

Over the past year, more than 13,400 bonds were listed on the Austrian stock exchange, surpassing the previous record of 9,400 bonds in 2023.

Notable listings included the first green bond from a European steel company, issued by voestalpine AG.

The stock exchange reported that numerous international issuers chose Vienna to list their debt, including the Mongolian capital Ulaanbaatar, which placed a $500 million state-guaranteed bond on the market. In 2024, there were over 1,000 bond issuers from 39 countries.

The exchange also noted an increase in the issuance of Austrian government bonds in 2024, which have been tradable in continuous auctions since March.

Additionally, equity turnover reached approximately €64 billion in 2024, marking an increase of over 17 per cent compared to 2023. This growth was driven by an “exceptionally high” turnover in the real estate sector from June to September.

Trading in Austrian equities was recently enhanced with a new system that allows midpoint trading. This system enables domestic shares to be traded in a separate midpoint order book at a mid-price between the best buy and sell limits.

"With the implementation of midpoint trading and the all-day tradability of Austrian government bonds—to name just two initiatives—we, as an infrastructure company, have realised important strategic initiatives in the interests of market participants,” said Christoph Boschan, chief executive of the Vienna Stock Exchange.

“The state-of-the-art infrastructure is constantly being adapted to current needs. However, the extent to which it is utilised, in other words, how many trains and what loads run on the tracks, depends largely on the political framework conditions."

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