Another Catalan company arrives at BME Growth. Parlem Telecom debuted this Tuesday on the former MAB starting to trade with a valuation of 45.3 million euros and a reference price of 2.83 euros per share. A few hours after its stock market debut, its value soared by 34.98%, reaching 3.82 euros per share. And it continues to rise.
Before ringing the traditional bells, the CEO of Parlem Telecom, Ernest Pérez-Mas, recalled the company's origins, which began on September 12, 2012, when at a fair the executive realized that there was no Catalan telecommunications operator. The narration, interrupted by the bells, continued with the difficulties that Parlem faced at the beginning, with notable episodes such as the help received from MasMóvil or the first invoice in January 2015 for 8,000 euros.
Nine years later, the company, which has gained the support of Inveready and Ona Capital, has debuted on the stock market considered one of the 200 fastest-growing European companies according to the Financial Times. "It is the beginning of a long journey," summarized Pérez-Mas, referring to Txarango's song Benvinguts. Parlem Telecom's arrival on the stock market marks another of the most important chapters in its trajectory, with consolidation as a proximity operator as its main future objective. It wants to do this through the imminent launch of a brand for the Valencian Community, its extension to the rest of Spain and Europe, the opening of stores throughout Catalonia, and the deployment of fiber optics in rural areas.
Parlem Telecom's stock market debut, which it does under the code PAR, is part of the growth that the company registered during 2020. Its turnover increased by 70%, reaching 18.7 million euros, and it registered profits for the first time, with about 11,000 euros. Thus, the number of mobile lines offered by this operator went from 36,300 to 54,700 last year and fixed telephony lines, from 16,600 to 24,500.
At the event at the Barcelona Stock Exchange, Pérez-Mas was accompanied by the Vice President of the Government, Jordi Puigneró; the President of the Barcelona Stock Exchange, Eduardo Ansaldo, and the managing director of BME Growth, Jesús González Nieto-Márquez. Parlem has become the third company to start trading this year on BME Growth. "It is very positive that more and more companies decide to make the leap to financial markets to find the visibility, access to investors and reputation they provide," González celebrated.