The Warsaw Stock Exchange has become the first foreign stock exchange to establish a representative office in Ukraine, according to WSE president Ludwig Sobolewski.  His announcement came during a press-conference Wednesday.

“The WSE offers many advantages to Ukrainian companies that would like to draw foreign capital at a lower cost than the other European stock exchanges can offer,” Sobolewski said.

“We realize the potential of the Ukrainian market and we are sure that close cooperation will be mutually beneficial,” he added.

He also said that the WSE office in Ukraine had launched its official web-site.

Discussing the prospect of Ukrainian IPOs on the WSE, Sobolewski said: “It would be a success if two or three Ukrainian companies held IPOs in Warsaw this year.” 

UNIAN reference: The Warsaw Stock Exchange is the largest exchange in the region, with a capitalization of 280 billion euros. It lists almost 400 companies. n 2007, it saw the second largest number of IPOs in Europe. Less than a year ago, the WSE established its NewConnect market where some 60 companies have already floated. Now, NewConnect is the fifth most popular alternative investment market in Europe.

Over 30 percent of WSE traders are foreign investors, while another 30 percent are investment and pension funds.