BMFMS spots potential in Sibiu spot market

Are you considering attracting any other foreign players among BMFMS shareholders in the near future aside from the Warsaw Stock Exchange?
BMFMS is a respectable institution, which has a deep consideration for the promises it makes and never plays a double game. We promised we would find a strong foreign partner, we did find it, and for now we will focus on several joint projects with the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE). These projects are the means to help us reach the objectives we have set for ourselves, namely to build a prominent stock exchange on the European capital market and become a market leader in Romania.

When do you estimate that there will be a functional spot market in Sibiu? How much potential does the local market have for a new player of this sort considering, for instance, the lack of issuers on the market?
We want this moment to come as soon as possible. We cannot give an exact estimate, but we hope to have a solid spot market in Sibiu sometime next year. We will take the first steps in this direction starting this year. We expect to get the approval for the spot market from the regulatory commission (CNVM), as the BMFMS' General Shareholders' Assembly has already approved the regulations in advance. We now have to submit the characteristics of the platform and then we will take care of hiring and training spot specialists, IT specialists and depository experts. All will be sent to Warsaw for special training. We want Romanian brokers to be able to trade WSE products and WSE brokers to be able to trade all BMFMS ones. The Romanian capital market is one of the main markets in Central and Eastern Europe and its growth potential is immense. This is particularly why we hope to exploit it with our Polish partner who has already managed to develop a high-caliber market and has the necessary know-how.
As for the number of issuers, there are enough companies interested in getting listed; they just need to be found and also to be offered attractive conditions – for them and for investors also. Furthermore, the attractiveness of the local capital market has gone up strongly following the entrance on the local market of numerous private pension funds and capital investment companies, which will lead to a surge in the stock market liquidity.

Which are the estimated costs for setting up a spot market in Sibiu?
We cannot estimate the value of these costs before deciding on the details of our strategies.

Are there any clear discussions between BMFMS and the WSE to increase Warsaw's participation in BMFMS?
Yes, there are talks, but I cannot give you any additional details, all the more so since there is no solution yet for limiting shareholders' voting rights to five percent if the shares they control exceed this level. We hope that this problem will be solved favorably and market operators which are shareholders in the BMFMS will be able to vote proportionally to the size of their share packages.

What other development plans does the BMFMS have for 2007 and 2008?
Aside from implementing the spot market, we have thought out a development program meant to ensure continuity and liquidity on the market. The offer of the Sibiu stock exchange will be improved with new derivative products. Also, to increase the BMFMS's liquidity, we will introduce the market-making system both for equity and forex. In this regard, we have already had discussions with several banks and brokerage companies which have expressed their wish to become market-makers with the BMFMS. The main facility the market-makers will have is that they will not have to pay any trading fees.

Ana-Maria David

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