Poland Short-Lists 4 Bourses In Stock Exchange Privatization
July 22 2009 - 5:35AM
Dow Jones News
Poland's Treasury has short-listed four exchanges, Deutsche
Boerse (DB1.XE), LSE (LSE.LN), Nasdaq-OMX (NDAW) and NYSE-Euronext
(NYX), to conduct due diligence on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, the
ministry said Wednesday.
Poland's government plans to sell a majority stake in the Warsaw
Stock Exchange, or Gielda Papierow Wartosciowych w Warszawie SA, by
the end of 2009, as part of its ambitious privatization plan, which
aims to raise 12 billion zlotys ($4.0 billion) this year.
The Treasury wants to sell a stake of between 51% and 73.82% in
the exchange, which itself has played a key role since 1989 in the
privatization of communist-era state-owned companies during
Poland's transition to capitalism.
Members of the Warsaw Stock Exchange will also be invited to
make offers for stakes of between 0.5% and 10% in the exchange,
from a 22.82%-plus-one-share stake earmarked for them, the Treasury
said in a statement.
The exchange industry has experienced a wave of consolidation in
recent years, including NYSE's acquisition of Euronext and Nasdaq's
acquisition of OMX, though deals have taken a pause during the
current global economic downturn.
Treasury Ministry Web site: www.msp.gov.pl
WSE website: www.gpw.pl
-By Marynia Kruk, Dow Jones Newswires; +48 22 447-2431; marynia.kruk@dowjones.com