Moscow Exchange adopts strategy 2028 and updates dividend policy

On 27 September 2023, the Moscow Exchange Supervisory Board approved the Group’s new strategy to 2028 and a new dividend policy.

Under the new strategy, the Group’s mission is to transform the financial market for the growth of everyone’s wealth, and aim to become the number one choice for comprehensive and effective financial management.

In the context of external constraints, the new strategy largely rests on trends in the Russian financial market. These include: [1] the increasing role of a retail investor, which is becoming a key figure in a number of financial market segments, [2] the emergence of digital financial assets’ (DFA) trading, and [3] the growing need of Russian companies to raise capital in the domestic market.

The development of capital markets is the most important priority of the new strategy. We aim to expand the list of instruments, including ESG products, and to improve their liquidity. The company will focus on working with issuers to guide and accompany them in raising capital market financing via equity, bond and DFA offerings, including those on OTC and investment platforms.

The key provisions of the new strategy naturally stem from previous strategies and are based on the strengths of Moscow Exchange’s business model and the key competences of its employees.

Consistent implementation of the new strategy will allow Moscow Exchange to: [1] maintain an outpacing growth rate in fee and commission income over the strategic horizon, [2] achieve steadily improving business efficiency in terms of cost-to-fee & commission income ratio and retain the business model’s profitability as measured by ROE of at least 18%.

An integral part of the strategy in terms of capital management is the new dividend policy, which implies a minimum dividend payout ratio at 50% of the Group’s IFRS net profit. Moscow Exchange will continue to pay dividends at least once every year. Free cash flow implied by the dividend policy includes capital expenditure for both maintenance and further development, as well as regulatory requirements for Moscow Exchange and its subsidiaries.

The new strategy will be a success if the company’s market capitalisation increases significantly, driven by a steady growth of key financials.