Between initial public offerings (IPOs) for companies listing and separate equity raising, a total of more than $8.3 billion was raised from investors.
The IPO activity for the past year raised $6.6 billion, compared with $7.5 billion a year ago, and there more than 165 subsequent capital raisings in the past year, which attracted investment of more than $1.7 billion for existing listed companies.
Stock exchange operator NZX said the NZX 50 index was up 16.7%, since the beginning of this year, delivering strong returns to investors, it said in a statement.
The data and amount raised has been skewed over the past two years by the Government's asset sales of Mighty River Power, Meridian Energy and Genesis Energy, which in themselves raised $4.7 billion.
Craigs Investment Partners broker, Peter McIntyre, described the past two years' activity as having been ''healthy for the market'', and likely to underpin further activity in the near to medium term.
''The last two years have seen an inordinate amount of activity, either on the Government [asset] sell-down and in plenty of new listings, too,'' Mr McIntyre said.
The sharemarket was an important part of the economy, offering the ability for companies to raise cash outside of friends, family or the banks, Mr McIntyre said.
''There's never been a greater diversity of stocks; possibly the best ever, whether it's a $10 million to $15 million company or $500 million,'' Mr McIntyre said.
While dwarfed by the Australian ASX, with its hundreds of resource sector and banking companies, the diversity of the NZX was getting bigger, and it had good options through a good range of investment sectors, even compared with Australia, Mr McIntyre said.
When asked if the two years of heightened investment meant NZX activity would ''fall off the cliff'', he said, ''No. There will be periods when investments will be in the doldrums, but we're in a low-interest economy, showing plenty of growth opportunities and with a stable Government.''
Mr McIntyre also highlighted there was a stronger regulatory environment, with Financial Market Authority regulations now coming into force, and improved boardroom governance ''These should all lead to healthier capital markets,'' he said.
The NZX had this year put in place a number of governance and process initiatives to improve both its communication of regulatory decisions and processes, and its handling of perceived or potential conflicts.
They include establishing a conflicts committee of the board, to oversee NZX's arrangements for managing conflicts and appointment of an independent non-director member, Derek Johnston, who is also incoming chairman of the regulatory governance committee, whose brief includes reviewing regulatory policy proposals.
The FMA had in September approved registration and rules for NXT, a new market designed for small, high growth companies, without the complexities of main board listing requirements.
Earlier this month, NZX's funds management business Smartshares listed two new exchange traded funds: the Australian Property Index Trust, which invests in 16 listed Australian property companies, and the Australian dividend index trust, which invests in the top 50 high-dividend-paying Australian listed companies.
The markets
Listings during the year to December
Genesis Energy, Intueri Education Group, Serko, Gentrack Group, ikeGPS Group, Scales Corporation, Metro Performance Glass, Vista Group International, Pushpay Holdings, EROAD, Lateral Corporation, TruScreen, Orion Health, Enprise Group, Evolve Education and Arvida Group.
A year on
At Dec 2013 At Dec 2014
NZX 50: up 16.5% up 16.7%
New listings: 11 16
Capital raising events: 270 165
New capital listed: $7.5 billion $6.6 billion
Total raised by companies: $4.02 billion $1.7 billion
SOURCE: NZX
