“Bullshit”. This is one of the more positive comments in the start-up scene. The position paper of the Young Digital Economy Advisory Board, which has now become known and about the the Handelsblatt reported, caused a stir on Tuesday – and a lot of trouble. Among other things, it demands that the media should no longer report independently on IPOs. It is said that “the press must be disciplined to provide factual, correct and complete information”. The reason: The media are partly to blame for the poor environment for IPOs in Germany. There are more and more “one-sided defamatory articles” that have spread as “downright bashing” of IPOs and the New Economy.
“Completely absurd demands,” wrote the German Association of Journalists (DJV). Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier quickly emphasized: “Freedom of the press is an outstanding basic right that we are obliged to protect.” He had “ordered the immediate removal”. The co-chair of the Young Digital Economy Advisory Board, Ratepay founder Miriam Wohlfarth, quickly apologized. The demand “in no way corresponds to the position of the advisory board”. And: “We distance ourselves from it clearly.” The matter is “very, very embarrassing”.
A “wrong and outdated document” was sent to the Federal Ministry of Economics
The Young Digital Economy Advisory Board is an official body with currently 29 members and is intended to advise the Federal Minister of Economics on “current issues relating to the young digital economy and new digital technologies in Germany”. It was brought into being eight years ago by the then Federal Minister of Economics, Philipp Rösler (FDP). The eleven-page position paper entitled “IPOs of German Startups”, which until recently was on the Ministry’s website, deals with the question of why there are comparatively few IPOs of young companies in Germany and provides recommendations. On page 8 under point 3.5 there is a critical reference to the role of the press. In addition to “disciplining”, there is also a requirement that the press should also be obliged to report on small IPOs. Articles should also be allowed to be published without paying royalties.
The authors of the paper, which apparently dates from April, are three members of the advisory board: Lea-Sophie Cramer, founder and former managing director of the start-up Amorelie, an online mail order company for adult toys, and Alex von Frankenberg, managing director of the High-Tech-Gründerfonds , as well as Christoph Gerlinger, managing director of the listed SGT German Private Equity.
But how could such a publication even come about?
“Our mistake as an advisory board is that our internal control mechanisms have failed,” says co-boss Wohlfarth. By switching to a more agile way of working, the decision-making processes within the advisory board have changed significantly in the past few months. A control did not take place sufficiently. A “wrong and outdated document” was sent to the Federal Ministry of Economics. Co-author Gerlinger said: “I would like to apologize to all journalists for this, I regret it very much and I take responsibility for it.” He had already offered the minister to resign from the advisory board.
The timing of publication is interesting. Because recently there has been a considerable number of successful IPOs in Germany. In terms of new issues, Deutsche Börse is even heading for the best year since the boom on the Neuer Markt at the turn of the millennium. These include a number of young companies, such as the used car dealer Auto 1, the keyboard manufacturer Cherry and the glasses company Mister Spex. The background to this is the currently very high share prices on the stock exchange.
Critical reports in the press as well as from investors or analysts are common in planned IPOs – and desired to protect investors from unpleasant surprises.