ISE tops global rankings for bond and investment fund listings

The number of securities listed on the Irish Stock Exchange rose by 6 per cent in 2015, in what has been hailed as an exceptional year that saw the ISE top global rankings for listing bonds and investment funds.

New figures published show more than 34,300 securities were listed on the ISE from over 80 countries last year, making the exchange the leading provider of listing services for debt and investment fund issuers around the world.

At the end of 2015, the ISE has 27,124 debt securities on its two bond markets, of which 7,219 were newly issued securities.

Among the new listings last year were ones from Trinity Biotech, FBD, Alitalia, Kraft Heinz, Pemex and DirecTv.

Meanwhile, companies trading on the ISE raised €3.1 billion in equity funds from international investors in 2015 with four IPOs from Malin, Applegreen, Permanent TSB and Hostelworld raising a combined €980 million.

Last year marked a record year for equity trading with 5.6 million trades carried out on the ISE, up 26 per cent on 2014. The Iseq index rose 30 per cent during the year to 6,792 and is ranked as one of the best performing indices in Europe after doubling its value over the last three years.

The ISE's chief executive Deirdre Somers, who was elected president of the Federation of European Securities Exchanges (FESE) last June, said the exchange performed well across all its business lines.

"Trading levels were up across equity and Irish Government bond markets and the ISE continues to be the dominant pool of trading in Irish shares," she said.