Digi Spain Telecom, the Spanish subsidiary of the Digi group, has concluded its first day on the Spanish stock exchanges with a decline of 8.04%, to 5.15 euros per share, below the placement price of 5.6 euros, placing its market value at 1,528.5 million euros.
The telecom company began trading this Thursday on the Spanish market at 6 euros per share, a level that implied a premium of 7.1% over the price set for the offering.
The operation, whose prospectus was registered and authorized last week by the National Securities Market Commission (CNMV), represented a capitalization close to 1,662 million euros at the initial price.
With this stock market debut, Digi begins a new phase for the industrial project launched in Spain in 2008, which has positioned it among the fastest-growing operators in the national market.
The final price of the public offering for sale (OPV) and subscription (OPS) was set last Tuesday after the placement was oversubscribed, which, as the company highlighted, demonstrates a "strong demand from international and national institutional investors."
The placement has been directed at qualified investors and has combined a capital increase of approximately 150 million euros (26.8 million newly issued shares) with a secondary offering of approximately 137 million (24.5 million shares held by Digi Romania), so that the initial size has been around 287 million euros.
The funds raised in the capital increase—about 134 million euros net—will be used mainly to accelerate the deployment of its own fiber optic and mobile telephony network in Spain. After the operation, the Digi Group retains around 80% of the capital, thus maintaining control of the company.
In addition, Digi Romania has granted an over-allotment option ('greenshoe') to Barclays Bank Ireland PLC, the entity responsible for stabilization, for up to 7.695 million additional shares (15% of the initial offering), which could increase the total amount to approximately 330 million euros.
The ordinary shares, admitted to trading on the Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, and Valencia stock exchanges, are traded through the Stock Exchange Interconnection System (Continuous Market) under the symbol 'Digis'.
After the allocation of shares was completed this Wednesday, Thursday's session marks the official start of trading and the stabilization period, which may last until August 15 at the latest. Payment against delivery is scheduled for this Friday, July 17, through Iberclear.
The IPO has had the support of Global Portfolio Investments, the investment vehicle of the Domínguez de la Maza family (Grupo Mayoral), which has committed 100 million euros as an anchor institutional investor.
The debut on the stock market was marked by the traditional ringing of the bell at the Madrid Stock Exchange Palace, in an event attended by the CEO of Digi Spain, Marius Varzaru, and the CEO of Digi Communications Group, Serghei Bulgac, along with board members, authorities, and representatives from the economic and social spheres.
"Today is a very important day for us. Digi's incorporation into the Spanish stock market is a milestone in our company's history and a boost to its growth, which today, thanks to the strength of our business model, has the confidence of its investors," said Varzaru, who stressed that this model is based on "sustained investment in our own infrastructure, technological innovation, operational efficiency, and commitment to our customers to provide them with the best service at the best price."
For his part, Bulgac highlighted that "Spain is one of the fastest-growing markets within the Group" and that Digi Spain's listing "reinforces the group's commitment to this country."
Barclays, UBS, and Banco Santander acted as global coordinators in the operation, along with BNP Paribas and Citi, as well as BBVA, CaixaBank, and ING, while Rothschild & Co was the company's independent financial advisor.
Interest from institutional investors and possible new placement
Varzaru explained that the company had the support of more than 50 institutional investors in its debut on the Spanish stock market, although demand came from "hundreds of investment funds" that studied the operation.
He also pointed out that the company is considering placing an additional 5% of its capital on the market after the initial offering, depending on price evolution and market conditions, an operation that could be executed "at some point, next year or in two."
In this regard, he recalled that the original plan defined nine months ago provided for a placement of up to 25% of the capital, although in a first phase it would be around 20%, with room to expand it later.
"The waiver we have received allows us to stay at this level, but we would like to continue and expand to 25% at some point," he stated.
Likewise, he indicated that the CNMV has authorized the waiver to not initially comply with the 25% 'free float' requirement, and that there is no firm calendar for this eventual additional placement, beyond the minimum 180-day restriction period after the debut.
Furthermore, he specified that there will be no limitations on the participation of retail investors in this possible operation, as it is a secondary placement without a new capital increase.
Dividend, Corporate Governance, and Forecasts
The company, which has designed a long-term growth strategy, already indicated in its IPO prospectus that it does not plan to distribute dividends before 2030 and that, from that date onwards, management will evaluate a possible payment based on results, cash generation, financing needs, strategic plans, and restrictions in its financial contracts.
However, Varzaru stated in declarations to TVE, reported by Europa Press, that there is room to advance the dividend if business performance exceeds forecasts. "Until 2030, we expect not to distribute dividends. If the business plan goes better than we had expected (...) there is a possibility of accelerating it," he stated.
Regarding corporate governance, the board of directors of the Spanish subsidiary will be chaired by Serghei Bulgac, as a proprietary director, while Marius Varzaru will serve as vice-chairman and CEO. They will be accompanied by Catalin Neagoe (executive), Mariana Mihaela Toroman (proprietary), Carlos Robles García (independent), and Virginia Arce Peralta (independent).
Financially, the company expects to achieve revenues between 1,040 and 1,085 million euros in 2026, which would imply an increase of between 11.9% and 16.8% compared to the 929.2 million forecast for 2025.
Finally, in the prospectus submitted to the CNMV, Digi warns of the indirect risks that could arise from the United States' tariff policy, as well as from geopolitical tensions on a global scale.