Startup giants still in the stock market parking lot

Does the change in the guidelines for accepting digital economy companies facilitate their entry into the capital market?

According to IDEA, If everything had gone as the well-known startups of the country expected in the spring of 2020 and at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, now at least a few recognized companies in this ecosystem, such as Digikala, Cafebazaar, Filimo, and others, would have had their shares traded in the capital market. It has been almost four years since the willingness and readiness of these companies to enter the stock market, and during this time, only TAPSI managed, after many ifs and buts, and in their own words, by putting on iron shoes, to display their symbol on the over-the-counter board.

Over the years, we have heard many times from government officials and the Stock Organization that startup companies will soon enter the stock market. For example, in the current spring, the CEO of the Tehran Stock Exchange announced that a large digital economy company would enter the stock market by the end of the month, a news that has not yet become a reality. There are various obstacles to the entry of startup companies into the stock market, perhaps the most prominent of which is the difficulties in evaluating their intangible assets, and in the next step, overcoming regulatory hurdles to obtain approval from relevant authorities. In this regard, on June 29th of last year, specific regulations for the admission of shares of new and digital economy companies to the stock market were announced, regulations that, according to startup companies, not only did not simplify their path to the stock market but made it more complex. Finally, just last week, the board of directors of the Stock and Securities Organization approved a new resolution on the ‘Special Regulations for the Admission of Shares of Knowledge-Based Companies Active in the Digital, Technological, and Creative Economy.’ Although this resolution has not yet been announced, it has both opponents and proponents. From the perspective of startup companies, there has not been much change in these regulations, only making them more ‘widespread.’ According to market experts, this resolution has come with some positive changes, including simplifying the process of obtaining security clearances from relevant authorities.