As part of a round table organized by the Horizon Press group, Zakaria Jerrari, Managing Director of Dislog Group's Finance division, shared his expertise on the motivations and benefits of IPOs for Moroccan companies: "An IPO ensures an efficient and transparent transition by providing a clear structure for corporate governance. This can be particularly important for family businesses seeking to ensure their long-term survival and growth. In addition, an IPO offers an opportunity to finance the company's growth. Large Moroccan companies wishing to go public often have development ambitions both on the domestic market and internationally.
Zakaria Jerrari questioned the effectiveness of current tax incentives to encourage Moroccan companies to go public. In his view, the tax incentive rates of 50% or 25% in the event of a transfer are not sufficiently attractive for companies, particularly SMEs. For him, this situation raises questions about the adequacy of the tax measures put in place and the stated objectives of economic development. Tax incentives to encourage companies to go public were introduced in Morocco in 2001. As an example, Jerrari develops his argument based on the success of initiatives in industrial acceleration zones.
"We introduced a tax incentive system in 2001 to encourage companies to develop and locate in industrial acceleration zones. This tax carrot provided a tax exemption for the first five years, followed by a reduction in corporate income tax to 8.75% for 20 years. The measure was a great success. It is legitimate to ask why part, say 30 to 40% of this tax carrot, couldn't be used to encourage SMEs to enter the stock market. This would be an important incentive," maintains the executive.
Jerrari's main criticism concerns the lack of sufficient incentives for SMEs. "Current tax incentive rates are not seen as decisive factors for these companies. Moroccan entrepreneurs, particularly in the case of SMEs, are confronted with total taxation on capital gains realized when they sell their shares in the event of a hybrid IPO combining sale and capital increase. This situation discourages them from considering the stock market as a viable option for their company's growth", explains Dislog Group's Managing Director, Finance.
source : IPO: Zakaria Jerrari explains Dislog's objectives (VIDEO) - LesEco.ma
