After two years as a purely virtual event, this year it was finally possible to welcome participants from numerous listed companies in person again at the SIX ConventionPoint. The conference, moderated by Hugo Bigi, started with a welcome from Christian Reuss, Head SIX Swiss Exchange, and the Issuer Relations Team, Vera Sokulskyj and Krishna Tewari. They gave an insight into how SIX Swiss Exchange can support the transition towards a more sustainable economy and an overview of what services the Issuer Relations team offers to issuers.
The conference continued with an update from SIX Exchange Regulation on current and planned changes to trading venue regulations. Very valuable for the participants was also the information where they can find which documents to facilitate their compliance with regulatory requirements.
We Must Act Now
Margit Kapfer, an expert on the environment and decarbonization, gave a broad overview of how companies will have to account for their handling of CO2 emissions in the future. And she opened the eyes of many. In her presentation "Net-zero - quo vadis?" she outlined how extensive the climate reporting requirements are becoming in the EU and probably also in Switzerland. An impression of what is in store for companies in the coming years is given by topics such as the emissions analysis of the entire value chain or the obligation to report not only how one contributes to the reduction of global warming, but also how one adapts to it as a company and can neutralize emissions. It is essential for companies to consider different scenarios in their planning and to collect reliable data for this purpose. And it's best to do it right away, because this requires extensive processes and regulation is advancing rapidly.
The Economic Outlook 2023 panel covered a range of current issues and challenges, from inflation to monetary and interest rate policy to economic developments in China. The three economists on the panel agreed that market volatility is likely to continue and also discussed how exchange rates and inflation rates are likely to continue to affect the Swiss export industry.
Finally, the event was rounded off with a presentation by entrepreneur and author Rolf Dobelli. He pointedly stated that one should stop reading the news and explained how one can better find one's way through the jungle of information overload. Afterwards, the participants took the opportunity to have his book personally signed. The conference also offered participants ample opportunity to make new contacts and exchange knowledge and experiences. We look forward to welcoming our issuers next December at the 17th Investor Relations Conference.