Boschan: "Urgent need to eliminate discrimination against equity investments"
16 June 2026 | Kurier
Christoph Boschan, CEO of Wiener Börse AG, reported record results for the exchange during the annual press conference, which was attended by various media representatives. The group’s profit before taxes increased to 53.4 million euros. Boschan emphasized that many Austrian corporations are “hidden champions” on the global market and are able to operate steadily in the face of a fluctuating global economy due to stable and adaptable business models. Despite the record result last year, Boschan also had some critical remarks: He called for the “urgent elimination of discrimination against equity investments.” The CEO identified issues in private retirement planning and called for tax advantages. He appeals to Austrian policymakers to follow the example of Scandinavian countries, where pension systems are fully funded.
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"The ATX is among the international front runners"
22 April 2026 | Börsen-Zeitung
Austria's benchmark index, the ATX, has outperformed the DAX over the past 25 years and continues to do so leaves the German benchmark index year to date. It recently reached a new record high, making the ATX one of the international front runners based on its performance. According to CEO Christoph Boschan, the tensions stemming from the war in Iran – which result in increased trading activity and volatility – will "be around for some time," but especially during these volatile periods, the leading role of national stock exchanges in terms of price quality and liquidity gains an even greater significance. Boschan emphasizes that "investors in ATX companies indirectly participate in the growth of Central and Eastern Europe, where growth rates are reliably higher than those in the rest of the eurozone."
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"Profit should not be considered a moral state of emergency"
2 April 2026 | Der Standard
Austria would be "rich, but with an underdeveloped capital market", according to Christoph Boschan, CEO of the Vienna Stock Exchange, in a commentary in "Der Standard". Capital markets thrive where returns are socially accepted, where risk is clearly rewarded, and where profit is not viewed as a moral emergency, says Boschan. Austria lacks this basic understanding as the capital market is viewed as volatile and unfamiliar. Yet the capital market does not stand for speculation, but rather for "equity instead of excessive debt, the capacity to bear risk for innovation, the scaling of young companies, and broad, long-term wealth creation." In times marked by technological progress, equity determines competitiveness. Austria must view capital market policy as a modernization project, according to Boschan. This requires a cultural shift away from sensationalism, the application of a system tailored to the capital market, an occupational pension schemes, tax-advantaged savings accounts, and sovereign wealth funds. "As long as the capital market is viewed as a necessary evil, it will remain stagnant. If it is understood as a legitimate component of the economic system, it can grow," Boschan is convinced.
Read the interview here (pdf-file 370 KB, German only)
“We are facing a record tax burden”
6 February 2026 | trend
CEO Christoph Boschan warns that Austria’s economic competitiveness is increasingly under pressure. While there are potential IPO candidates for Vienna, private capital is still insufficiently used to finance innovation. Future-oriented investment requires equity, which could be mobilised by integrating capital markets more strongly into the pension system. As many European countries already systematically harness equity returns for retirement provision, Austria is falling behind. Equity gains are taxed at more than 50 percent – a record level by international standards. “Austria’s growth reserve is lying dormant,” Boschan says, “by finally putting nearly 350 billion euros in bank deposits with little to no interest to good use for investments through the right capital market policy.”
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