Equity issuance hit 19-year low in 2022

Global equity issuance dropped to a 19-year low in 2022, and debt activity slipped too, according to new data from Refinitiv.

As markets weakened last year amid soaring interest rates, global equity market activity dropped by 62% year over year to its lowest level since 2003. New issuance totalled $487.5 billion (all figures in U.S. dollars), Refinitiv reported.

The volume of equity deals also fell by 39% to a 10-year low, the firm said.

The decline in equity market activity came as global initial public offerings (IPOs) dropped by 64% from the previous year to $148 billion, and secondary offerings were down 61% to $271.3 billion.

In particular, U.S. IPOs were down 95% year over year to their lowest level since 1990, Refinitiv reported.

At the same time, amid elevated market uncertainty, global debt market activity slipped by 19% to $8.3 trillion in 2022, the firm said.

The volume of global debt deals was down by 12% from the previous year.

The drop in debt issuance was concentrated in the global high yield sector, which saw activity plunge by 80% to its lowest level since the global financial crisis in 2008.

Investment grade corporate debt underwriting activity was down just 13% to $4.1 trillion in the year, and green bond issuance dropped by 19% from the previous year.

The fourth quarter was weaker for both the equity and debt markets, Refinitiv said. Equity issuance dropped by 14% quarter over quarter, and debt market activity was down 13%.

The turmoil in global markets was reflected in the underwriting league tables, which saw China’s CITIC jump to the top of the equity rankings, up from sixth place last year.

Perennial Wall Street leader, Goldman Sachs, fell to second spot, followed by JP Morgan and Morgan Stanley. China International Capital Co ranked fifth, with Citi and BofA bumped out of the top five.

On the debt side, JP Morgan continued to lead the global league tables. BofA ranked second with Citi, Goldman and Barclays rounding out the top five.

James Langton

James is a senior reporter for Advisor.ca and its sister publication, Investment Executive. He has been reporting on regulation, securities law, industry news and more since 1994.