Bulgarian Stock Exchange is opening the BEAM market to larger companies and more capital

Bulgarian companies are gaining more room to raise capital on the stock exchange. Following recent legislative changes, the threshold up to which businesses can raise funds on the BEAM market under simplified terms is being raised from 8 million to 12 million euros. The change comes at a time when the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) is attempting to give new momentum to the market for growing small and medium-sized enterprises following the apparent slowdown in initial public offerings in recent years.

The regulatory changes are part of amendments to the Public Offering of Securities Act and the Financial Instruments Markets Act, published in the State Gazette on August 7.

Under the beam, companies can raise capital without a prospectus approved by the Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) if the total amount of the offering over a 12-month period remains below a certain statutory threshold. The limit was initially set at less than 3 million euros; in 2022, it was raised to less than 8 million euros; and as of August 7, 2026, it is now 12 million euros.

This amount is not an absolute funding cap – but if a company wishes to raise more capital, it will have to do so under a more stringent regulatory regime, including the requirement for a FSC-approved prospectus. This is precisely where the difference lies between beam as a simplified market and the main regulated market.

This distinction is important because the lighter procedure is one of the core ideas behind BEAM – to remove some of the administrative and financial barriers that traditionally keep smaller companies away from the capital market.

What Has Happened in 5 Years

BEAM’s history is relatively short. The market received approval from the FSC as early as late 2018, but it did not actually begin to function as a channel for raising capital until 2021. The first IPO was by the technology company Biodit, which raised approximately 1 million BGN.

In just five years, the size of offerings eligible for the simplified procedure has quadrupled.

This change also broadens the profile of potential candidates. While under the initial limit (3 million euros), beam was aimed primarily at relatively small companies and more modest funding rounds, the current limit of 12 million euros now allows the platform to be used by more mature companies with larger investment plans as well.

20 IPOs and Over 52 Million Euros

In the five years since beam’s actual launch, companies from various sectors – ranging from technology and e-commerce to energy, finance, and manufacturing – have gone public through the platform.

According to data from the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE), 20 successful initial public offerings (IPOs) have been completed to date, and the total capital raised exceeds 52 million euros, a figure that includes subsequent capital increases. Currently, 19 stock issues and seven bond issues are traded on beam.

The first strong wave came immediately after the launch. As early as 2021, seven equity offerings were registered on the market, and six IPOs were completed the following year. At that time, the market capitalization of the equity segment reached approximately 330.5 million leva.

However, growth is not all upward. After the initial enthusiasm, the influx of new companies slowed significantly. In 2025, for example, there were no new IPOs, bond offerings, or warrant issuances on the BSE, whereas a year earlier, the BSE reported four initial public offerings, four bond offerings, and one warrant issuance.

Thus, 2026 is gradually taking shape as an attempt at a new acceleration. Helios Marine raised 2.438 million euros and became the 20th company to successfully complete an IPO on the market. Among the goals for the raised capital are the expansion of production and research and development activities, including a new center in Burgas.

Raising the threshold to 12 million euros is another part of this effort, but it is not the only one.

The Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE) and the Executive Agency for the Promotion of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises have already launched a program worth nearly 1 million euros, through which 90% of companies’ costs related to preparation and listing can be covered. It is expected that about 20 companies will receive support over the next three years.

This addresses another challenge facing smaller businesses – the costs of lawyers, consultants, accountants, and preparing the offering itself, which are incurred even before the company has raised capital.

A Stepping Stone to the Main Stock Exchange

One of the most important tests for beam is not actually how many companies will remain on it, but how many will succeed in outgrowing it.

The most notable example so far is “Smart Organic.” The company first raised capital through BEAM, and in May 2024, it moved to the regulated market of the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE). Subsequently, it carried out a capital increase of approximately 10 million euros, which it used to expand production and pursue international growth.

It is precisely this trajectory that represents one of the market’s greatest potential benefits – allowing a private business to conduct a relatively small initial public offering (IPO), become accustomed to the requirements for public companies, raise additional capital, and, once it reaches sufficient scale, transition to the regulated market.

Webit Investment Network illustrates another possible model. After initially raising approximately 3 million euros, the company used beam for a subsequent capital increase of approximately 6.2 million euros. Thus, the market can serve not only as a venue for a one-time IPO but also as a source of capital at various stages of growth.

Liquidity Remains the Big Test

The higher threshold, however, addresses only one side of the equation. It allows companies to offer more shares and raise more funds through the simplified procedure, but it does not guarantee that there will be enough investors interested in them.

It is precisely secondary trading that remains one of beam’s weak points. An analysis cited by the Ministry of Finance shows that the number of trades in BEAM shares was equivalent to about 3% of trades on the regulated market in 2023 and 6% in 2024. And while the trend is positive, the scale remains very small.

There are also significant differences among individual companies—for some, the freely tradable portion of the capital is only a few percent. This limits the number of trades and makes it difficult both for investors to exit their positions and for a reliable market price to form.

Therefore, the increase from 8 to 12 million euros alone is unlikely to trigger a new boom on the BEAM. However, it comes as part of a broader package – along with subsidies for listing costs and the launch of IPO Growth (a special stock market instrument designed to help Bulgarian companies grow and enable investors to easily profit from their success) as a potential professional investor in new issuances, and the experience already gained over the first five years on the market.

Beam’s first task was to demonstrate that Bulgarian small and medium-sized companies can indeed use the stock market as an alternative to bank and private financing. After 20 successful IPOs, this test has largely been passed.

The next challenge is more difficult: to help more companies not only raise funds but also convert public capital into growth, while ensuring that a sufficiently active secondary market develops for their shares. Only then will the increase to 12 million euros prove to be not just a higher legal threshold, but a real step toward a deeper capital market.

Translated with DeepL.