Floatation of Stock Exchange could make its main shareholders euro-millionaires

The Bucharest Stock Exchange (BSE) will float on its own market in two months' time at the latest, after the Stock Exchange Board selected brokerage company Intercapital Invest to handle the operation.

The listing of the BSE is the leading move of its kind in the last two years, with the last major company to be floated on the Stock Exchange being Teraplast Bistrita, in July 2008. Currently put at around 50-60 million euros, the listing would propel the BSE straight into the top 20 of the biggest listed companies, and would make its around 50 shareholders euro-millionaires - brokers and individuals hold over 80% of the Stock Exchange's capital. Mircea Musgociu, who holds 4.3% of the Stock Exchange's shares, cold sell them for over 2.5 million euros after floatation.

Up until last year, all transactions with BSE shares had to be approved by the Stock Exchange Board, which made the process drag on. Since October 2009 sales procedures were simplified, in order to prepare the share listing, with few official data available on transactions conducted since then. The latest buying offers on the website of the Stock Exchange put the market operator at 48 to 56 million euros.