SPECIAL NEWS: While crypto is in decline, BIST is booming! How long will the public offering craze continue?

To Borsa Istanbul ( BIST ) There is an extraordinary interest, especially BIST, which has accelerated with the public offering craze, cannot get enough of the records. BIST became the favorite financial market in this period when investors had difficulty making profits due to both the tightening policy around the world and the inflationary pressure in Turkey.

BIST100, which exceeded the 8,000 index on September 1, is at 8265 as of the writing of the news. The number of BIST investors has reached 6,257,415. So much so that the Turkish investor base, which has gained a large place in the crypto market in the past, is currently showing the same interest in BIST. So, how is 2023 progressing in terms of cryptocurrencies and BIST? Which stocks and cryptocurrencies have gained the most since the beginning of the year?

BIST’s dazzling performance

BIST, which started 2023 with an index of 4624, continues its main trend upwards, although it experiences corrections from time to time. In particular, BIST, which has increased almost without any loss since May, reached the 8290 index and recorded a total increase of 79.25 percent since the beginning of the year.

BIST broke a record in the number of investors!

The number of BIST investors reached its new historical peak with the impact of new public offerings. According to the data published by the Central Registry Agency, the number of BIST investors reached 6 million 257 thousand 415 as of August 31, breaking a record. While the increase in the number of investors in the last 15 days was 627 thousand, the number of investors with a share balance entering the stock market in a month increased to 1 million 158 thousand 333 people.

The number of investors, which was 3 million 794 thousand 409 on December 31, increased by 2 million 462 thousand 6 people as of August 31, reaching 6 million 257 thousand 415 people.

Speaking specifically to Coinkolik, Acar Securities Chief Analyst Ahmet Mergen stated that BIST100, like other stock markets, fell in a very short time since the pandemic emerged in Turkey in 2020, but with the subsequent recovery, the index accelerated upwards from the 820 level. Mergen stated that BIST100 is moving upwards along with indices such as Dow Jones, S&P and Nasdaq.

“Although the dismissal of the Central Bank Governor (Şahap Kavcıoğlu) caused a correction, the trend still continues very strongly upwards,” said Mergen, adding, “As it seems, the point reached is above 8300. “Of course, among the factors that have a bit of an impact on this are the unexpected rise in inflation in the last two years, the dollar jumping from 8.5 to 19, and after resisting there for a while, it suddenly accelerated to 28,” he said.

Stating that investors who want to protect their money have turned to BIST100 over time, Mergen stated that a large number of people are included in this field and said: “Those who want to protect their money came to the stock market when they did not find the interest rate sufficient in addition to real estate, land, foreign currency or durable consumer goods. Today, wherever you look, more than 6 million investors came to the place where 50 thousand people have been doing business for 25 years. But the accounts are small or large. No matter, nearly 6 million people brought their money here. Since this, of course, caused the prices to rise very quickly in an environment where there were not many lots and public offerings, the stock market was flooded by a mass of investors who triggered each other: “Money is being made, let’s go to the stock market.”

Speaking exclusively to Coinkolik, analyst Mete Ali Başkaya stated that with the end of the election uncertainties in Turkey and the new economic order taking office, the BIST100 index is among the best-performing stock markets worldwide. Stating that the index increased by 49.5 percent to 8,236 points from the beginning of 2023 to September 5, Başkaya underlined that this increase went down in history as the 6th strongest annual increase recorded by the index since 2000.

“BIST 100 index provided 4.5 percent return to its investors in dollar terms. “However, it is noteworthy that the index is at 307.6 points compared to its peak of 510 points,” said Başkaya, adding: “In addition, the index has brought gains to its investors for five consecutive years for the first time since 1997. According to the sector analysis, all sectors were profitable in 2023. “The sector that earned the most was stone and soil with 112.4 percent, while the banking sector showed an increase of 61.3 percent.”

It is stated that 32 companies were offered to the public in 2023 and that these public offerings played an important role in introducing new investors to the stock market. According to Central Registry Agency data, the amount collected from approximately 42 million investors participating in the public offering this year was 43 billion lira. In 2023 alone, $2 billion worth of IPOs have occurred by August. This brought Borsa Istanbul to the top 10 among the world’s stock exchanges.

Underlining that the number of investors in the stock market has quadrupled since 2019, Başkaya said, “Especially with the public offering craze in 2023, many new and amateur investors joined the market. This intense public offering interest pushed the traded shares to record levels. “For example, OFSYM company is experiencing its ceiling above 10 and its share price has almost quadrupled,” he said.

So, will the IPO craze continue with this momentum? “The market continues to accelerate uncontrollably,” said Başkaya, adding: “In this stratosphere-like movement, investors will be divided into two. The first one is ‘We broke it cheaply – we’re glad we got out / I’m glad we didn’t get in.’ The second is those who will encounter kamikaze. If there are readers involved in this IPO frenzy, it’s hard to know which group you’ll be in. However, it should not be forgotten that emotional decisions often lead to irrational results. “Investing in just one share, especially with high amounts, carries great risks.”

Evaluating the crypto market, Başkaya drew attention to the Bitcoin halving cycle: “2023 contains many opportunities and risks for the cryptocurrency market. Regulations, economic conditions and technological developments are among the most important factors that will shape the future of the market. “The Bitcoin halving cycle is an issue that the entire market is eagerly awaiting and hopeful about.”

The most profitable stocks of 2023

As public offerings took Turkey by storm, many stocks performed unusually. BIST, which is generally calmer than other financial markets, has surpassed its performance in previous years. In this process, not only companies that went public, but also companies that have been on BIST for many years came to the fore.

The stock that gained the most value since the beginning of 2023 was Oncosem (ONCSM), with an increase of 1186 percent. ONCSM, which operates in the chemical, oil and plastic sectors, is currently traded at 251.50 TL.

In second place was SDT Space (SDTTR), which recorded an increase of 1134 percent. SDTTR, which carries out studies in the field of technology, currently finds buyers at 407.50 TL.

Astor Energy (ASTOR) took the third place with a performance of 929.1 percent. ASTOR, which operates in the field of metal goods and machinery, continues to stand out with social metrics.

In addition to the top ranking statistics, the inclusion of a sports club in the list also attracted attention. Beşiktaş (BJKAS) ranked seventh, rising 554.9 percent since the beginning of the year.

BIST’s main doping: Public offerings!

Increasing public offering participation is one of the factors that keep BIST strong. While there is a global cash problem, public offerings, which are seen as guaranteed profit opportunities, are facing intense demand from investors. The amount collected from approximately 42 million investors participating in the public offering this year approached 43 billion TL.

When Turkey’s Google search data for the last 12 months is considered, it is seen how much interest the public offering has attracted. Searches for “IPO” peaked at 100 Google points between August 27 and September 2, 2023. It also showed itself through social metrics. One of the clearest examples of this situation is experienced on the X platform. Posts about public offerings shared using hashtags reach thousands of views in a very short time.

Performance of cryptocurrencies

BTC, which entered 2023 at very low levels due to the FTX crisis, experienced a significant rise accompanied by fundamental analysis. The leader of cryptocurrencies, which entered 2023 at $ 16,652, reached the highest level of $ 31,720 during the year. Although this increase, which corresponds to 90.48 percent, appears to be higher than BIST, it corresponds to 54.70 percent according to its current value.

Social metrics are weakening in crypto

When Turkey’s Google search data for the last 12 months is examined, it appears that the demand for cryptocurrencies is gradually decreasing. Bitcoin Google searches, which are also 33 points in the current date range, have been in a downward trend since November 6 – 12. Even though the market tries to gain strength from time to time with ETF news, this atmosphere cannot be permanent. Crypto investors, on the other hand, are not demanding about cryptocurrencies due to the uncertain and relatively negative progress of the sector.

The most profitable coins of 2023

The total market value of Bitcoin and altcoins has increased by 36 percent since the beginning of the year. The total market value, which was 795 billion dollars on January 1, has currently exceeded 1.1 trillion dollars. In addition to the rise in BTC price, there was also fluctuation in the dominance level.

Although Bitcoin’s dominance value approached 50 percent, some coins diverged and performed effectively. Among the top 100 cryptocurrencies by market value, the project that has gained the most value since the beginning of the year has been PEPE, which has wreaked havoc on a period.

PEPE, which experienced a total increase of 2424 percent, attracted great attention until it was listed on popular crypto exchanges. It left its mark on 2023. However, the listing date is not at the beginning of 2023. When we did not include PEPE in the list, the cryptocurrency that experienced the highest increase was Conflux (CFX) with 2092 percent. Cryptocurrencies following CFX are as follows:

Injective (INJ) 838 percent, Render Token (RNDR) 655 percent, Stacks (STX) 497 percent, Bitcoin Cash (BCH) 138 percent, Immutable (IMX) 96 percent, The Graph (GRT) percent, Rocket Pool (RPL) percent 84, Kava (KAVA) 83 percent, Lido DAO (LDO) 82 percent.