MADRID: Spain’s stock market supervisor expects around six firms to debut on the Spanish exchange in 2021, which would set a record for initial public offerings (IPOs).

Global stock markets have benefited this year from ultra-low interest rates and government economic stimulus measures aimed at alleviating the effects of the coronavirus crisis, driving record numbers of IPOs in several countries.

“It’s a positive phenomenon and great news for the Spanish market to have IPOs after two years with only two,” Rodrigo Buenaventura, who is head of the Comision Nacional del Mercado de Valores (CNMV) told a Wednesday news briefing.

Among the planned Spanish listings, Bankinter has said it is expecting to get approval to spin off its insurance unit LDA and list more than 80%.

Renewables company Acciona has already started the process of spinning off its energy unit, while energy firms such as Capital Energy and Opdenergy are also looking for ways to raise funds.

“We could be speaking about half a dozen IPOs, which, if successful, would be the highest number since we have records at the commission,” Buenaventura said, adding that he doubted that this pace, partially driven by a market boom in green assets such as renewable energy, was sustainable in the long run.

Green energy producer Grenergy and solar equipment maker Soltec were the latest companies to debut on the local market in late 2019 and late 2020 respectively.