Bucharest Stock Exchange

04/22/2021 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/22/2021 05:11

4/22/2021 - Bucharest Stock Exchange starts the 4th edition of Made in Romania and launches a new digitalized program platform

  • Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) kicks off the 4th edition of Made in Romania, BVB's program dedicated to Romanian entrepreneurial companies
  • The nomination period of the companies that will be part of the Made in Romania 2021 edition starts today, April 22, and is open until June 30
  • The program platform, developed in partnership with Microsoft Romania, is www.investingromania.com
  • The new platform offers to entrepreneurs the possibility to get in touch with investors and consultants, as well as with other entrepreneurs

Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) launches today, April 22, the 4th edition of the Made in Romania program and a new, fully digitized platform of the project, which connects companies, investors and consultants. The platform is available on www.investingromania.com. Made in Romania opens the nomination period as well for the companies to be included in this year's edition, starting from today, April 22, until June 30.

'Made in Romania is Bucharest Stock Exchange's flagship program for the development and promotion of the Romanian entrepreneurial environment. Through Made in Romania we build an ecosystem whose core is the Romanian stock market, a framework in which local entrepreneurs can promote their business and get in touch with capital providers active on the local market, using a modern technological platform. We find the evidence of the success of this program, now at its fourth edition, both in the growing number of companies that participated from one edition to another, but also in the financing rounds that companies in this program have carried out in recent years through BVB, which have a total value of approximately EUR 80mn', said Radu Hanga, BVB's Chairman of the Board.

By launching the www.investingromania.com platform, BVB transforms the Made in Romania program into a fully digitized one and allows entrepreneurs to get in touch with investors and consultants, as well as with other entrepreneurs registered on the platform.

'Because of the pandemic period digitalization is no longer just an option for most businesses to continue. This pandemic offered us, at Bucharest Stock Exchange, the opportunity to prepare the transition of the Made in Romania program to the digital area. We are delighted that we have found in Microsoft the partner that offered us the technological know-how to develop the Made in Romania platform. Thus, entrepreneurs have at their disposal a simple and in the same time a complex technological mechanism for attracting financing, whether we are talking about the stock market, business angels, venture capital or banks, as well as access to business acceleration programs and, of course, consultants experienced in business's development. We want Made in Romania to be like a «one-stop-shop» for entrepreneurs, where they have access to all the necessary mechanisms for development', said Adrian Tanase, CEO, Bucharest Stock Exchange.

'We are in time when we turn to technology even more to innovate and provide hope and solutions for the future. The next breakthroughs will come not only from technology providers, but from entrepreneurs and Romanian organizations from across industries that creatively build upon this digital opportunity. By adding the Microsoft Cloud capabilities to this unique program powered by BVB, we aim to inspire Romanian entrepreneurs to define and build the future of a resilient and sustainable digital economy', said Daniel Rusen, Marketing and Operations Director, Microsoft Romania.

The Made in Romania program is structured in 4 stages. In the first stage, starting today until June 30, Romanian entrepreneurs, partners and supporters, employees of the Romanian companies, as well as members of the Nomination Committee can nominate companies through the platform www.investingromania.com. Between May and June this year, BVB will organize regional workshops and webinars for semifinalist companies from previous editions, for nominated companies in the current edition or registered on the platform.

In the second stage, in July, BVB together with the members of the Nomination Committee will select 50 companies, from all the applications received. In the third stage, in August, the public will establish by vote one of the 15 finalist companies of this edition, out of the 50 semifinalist ones. The other 14 finalist companies will be chosen by a Jury of experts in various fields of economics. In the last stage of the program, in September, BVB will announce the 15 finalist companies of this edition during an Awards Gala.

The Nominating Committee consists of the following persons:

  • George Cozos, Small&Medium Business Sales Manager, Microsoft Romania
  • Gabriel Sidor, Immersion Lab, Director, UiPath
  • Alexandra Bran, CFO & Board Member, ROCA Investments
  • Monica Ivan, CEO, BRK Financial Group
  • Mihai Purcarea, CEO, BRD Asset Management
  • Alexandru ?tefan Vlaicu, Investment Banking Manager, BT Capital Partners
  • Ion Dumitru, CEO, DoingBusiness.ro
  • Mihaela Mihailescu, Associate Director, Bancher Senior, EBRD
  • Sergiu Voicu, Journalist, Digi24
  • Adriana Iordan, VP Product & Marketing, SeedBlink
  • Vasile Andrian, Partner & Head of Audit & FAS, Mazars Romania
  • Mihai Logofatu, CEO & Co-founder, Bittnet Group

The members of the Jury who will decide the finalist companies from the Made in Romania 2021 edition are:

  • Radu Hanga, Chairman of the Board, Bucharest Stock Exchange
  • Daniel Rusen, Marketing and Operations Director, Microsoft Romania
  • Rudolf Vizental, CEO, ROCA Investments
  • Alexandru Mihailciuc, VP, Sales Engineering & Customer Success, UiPath
  • Razvan Butucaru, Partner, Audit & Financial Advisory, Mazars Romania
  • Ovidiu-George Dumitrescu, CFA, Deputy CEO, TradeVille
  • Razvan Ra?, Deputy CEO, BRK Financial Group
  • Daniel Szekely, Executive Director IMM & Micro, Banca Transilvania
  • Irina Neac?u, Executive Corporate Finance Director, BRD
  • Cristian Herghelegiu, CEO, Dendrio
  • Andrei Dudoiu, CEO & Co-founder, SeedBlink
  • Jose Maria Martinez de Alegria, Consultant, Horvath & Partners Management Consulting

Made in Romania project was launched by the Bucharest Stock Exchange in 2017, to identify and promote the top companies in Romania. During 2021, the Main Partners that support the project are: Microsoft, UiPath, ROCA Investments, Banca Transilvania, BT Capital Partners, BRD Groupe Societe Generale, BRD Asset Management, BRK Financial Group, Dendrio, Mazars, SeedBlink, Horvath & Partners, TradeVille, together with the supporters of ANIS, DoingBusiness, Romanian Business Leaders and the media partner Digi24.