Companies and potential investors are coming closer together again after the coronavirus years. Between Q3 2022 and Q3 2023, 84% of companies organised at least one roadshow. This is suggested by the figures in the “Global Roadshow Report 2023” from BofA Securities. Indeed, there is one trend that emerged in the wake of travel restrictions and assembly bans that has developed into a serious alternative to meetings in different cities around the globe: virtual roadshows.
Almost every second company relies on virtual roadshows
More than four out of ten companies surveyed for the report (43%) stated that they had organised a virtual roadshow in the last 12 months. This is a decrease compared to the previous year (67%), but was also expected by experts due to the freedom to travel. What was not necessarily to be expected was that, on average, almost as many roadshows were held virtually (3.4 per company surveyed) as were held in person (3.7).
Regionally, the number of virtual roadshows hardly varies. Asian companies are slightly more likely to hold virtual meetings (45%) than companies from Europe (43%) and North America (43%). There are also hardly any differences in company sizes. The only outlier: large-cap companies are organising virtual roadshows slightly less often (39%) than others.
Number of digital roadshows: Asian companies have been particularly busy
When it comes to the number of virtual roadshows, companies from Asia are particularly eager. On average, they hold 8.0 digital events of this type. The global average is 3.4. Between Q3 2022 and Q3 2023, European companies organised an average of 3.7 virtual roadshows. North American companies are at the bottom with an average value of 2.3.
A look at the companies reveals that mega caps held by far the most digital roadshows. 46% of the world’s largest companies were present to investors via the Internet and organised an average of 8.0 roadshows. 45% of small-cap companies invited an average of 3.6 virtual roadshows. Mid-cap companies and large caps are behind with respect to this statistic.
A significant decrease can be noted with respect to the time factor. On average, the companies spent 6.9 days organising roadshows online. In the previous year, it was 9.4 days. Asian companies are also at the forefront here. They set aside an average of 17 days for virtual roadshows. This is followed by European (8.4 days) and North American (3.7) companies. With an average of 13 days, mega-cap companies took a particularly long time. At 6.5 days, small caps are ahead of mid caps (6.1) and large caps (6.0).
From CEO to IRO: Who organises the virtual roadshows?
The report is also an exciting answer to the question of who potential investors are dealing with at the virtual events. It can be seen that at virtual roadshows, the most important managers were present slightly less often than at face-to-face events. 23% of digital events were carried out by the IRO alone. However, CEO and CFO together (23%) were more likely to be present at virtual roadshows than they were at in-person roadshows (18%).
For companies with a lower market capitalisation, both CEO and CFO are more likely to participate in a virtual roadshow. Small-cap companies have more than half (54%) of virtual events carried out by the IRO alone. Only 8% of these are accompanied by the CEO. For presence roadshows of small caps, this number is 21%. For mid-cap companies, the virtual roadshows are most likely to be carried out by the CEO alone (32%). This also applies to medium-sized companies for in-person roadshows, 44% of which are led only by the CEO.
How did the virtual roadshows arrive?
For the report, the IROs of the companies were asked for their opinions. According to the survey, the satisfaction value for virtual roadshows is 8.1 out of 10 possible points. This means that the virtual meetings perform slightly worse than the in-person roadshows, which have a rating of 9.0. It is striking that only 45% of IROs gave a rating between 8 and 10 for virtual roadshows. For personal events, this value is 72%.
With a rating of 8.6, the IROs of mega-cap companies were the most satisfied with virtual roadshows. Small caps (8.0), mid caps (8.1) and large caps (7.9) are not much different.
From a global perspective, there are hardly any differences in satisfaction. For digital events, it is not so important where you are. This, in turn, is one of the major advantages of virtual roadshows, which could establish them as an important factor for listed companies in the future.