A relevant draft law transposing the EU directive into the law on joint stock companies is being promoted by the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, responsible for achieving gender equality in all spheres of the economy.
According to the authors of the draft law, it will be difficult to achieve gender balance of directors of companies listed on the stock exchange, but Moldova is obliged to do so by the commitments undertaken, enshrined in Chapter 19 “Social and Labor Policy” of the National Program for Accession to the European Union.
Felicia Beckhtoldt, State Secretary of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, emphasized: “Gender balance does not mean setting quotas, but creating equal conditions for women and men to participate in decision-making in the corporate environment. This is a natural step towards modernizing the management culture and bringing Moldova closer to European standards”.
The related measures will still be discussed in public consultations, in order to make the process realistic. Currently, gender balance exists in the management of 60% of listed companies on the Stock Exchange.
According to the Moldovan Stock Exchange, 12 such joint stock companies are registered on the regulated securities market as of October 2025: “Moldova-Agroindbank” (corresponding to a 40% quota of women on the board of directors), “Acord Grup” (33%), “Banca de Finanțe și Comerț” (50%), “Floarea Soarelui” (20%), “Comerțbank” (25%), “Energbank” (40%).
Companies will set their own gender balance quota to allow for greater flexibility in meeting gender balance requirements. Regulated market participants who choose the 40% quota will set individual targets for improving gender balance among executive directors and will try to achieve them by January 1, 2028, the proposed legislative changes stipulate.
