The Moscow Exchange has announced plans to attract Russian video game developers to the stock market. This concerns more than 150 companies operating in this field. The initiative comes from the issuer relations department, which has already established contact with the industry video game association. According to the head of the division, several companies among the association's members have already expressed interest in raising financing through exchange mechanisms, and some of them could well become quality issuers.
Betting on the high-margin sector
The gaming business is a classic example of high margins, which makes it attractive for public investment. Global practice confirms this: about a hundred gaming companies are traded on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, around 50 on NASDAQ Stockholm, and approximately 30 on U.S. platforms. These figures clearly demonstrate that Russian studios have room to grow in terms of access to capital.
For the gaming segment, blockchain and cryptocurrency have long ceased to be exotic. New technologies, including Play-to-Earn models and NFTs, are radically changing the economics of games, transferring in-game items into full ownership of gamers. Developers entering organized trading fits into this trend, offering an alternative to venture rounds and loans, and giving investors access to a new class of assets.
New council and exchange plans
Within the "Innovation and Investment Market" sector, the exchange plans to create a specialized video game council. This platform is aimed at young technology companies that find it difficult to pass listing on the main market independently without additional support. The council will become a gathering point for future issuers, allowing unified approaches to studio valuation to be developed and preparing them for placement.
The initiative is only part of a large-scale infrastructure effort. Since September 14, the trading platform has extended its main session to 10 hours across four markets, giving investors an additional hour for operations. In the summer, an artificial intelligence-based system was also launched to detect trades with signs of market manipulation and insider trading, strengthening oversight of trading integrity.
Specific candidate names have not yet been disclosed, but the association includes several companies that could potentially go public in the future.
Analyst comment: The Russian gaming industry has long needed civilized access to capital. However, for success, the exchange must not only attract studios but also ensure their transparency and clear valuation — otherwise, this sector risks remaining niche rather than becoming a full-fledged driver of the innovation market.