First came the SIFs in 1992, and then the privatisation coupons in 1996, followed now by the shares of national state-owned companies granted as reparations to former owners of nationalised houses in Romania.
This is already regarded as the biggest business on the Romanian market for the years to come, with the reparations to be thus awarded amounting to 8 to 10bn euros. The shares that will be acquired in strategic energy companies like Transelectrica, Nuclearelectrica, Transgaz, Romgaz or mining companies are supposed to be traded on a specially regulated market inside the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BSE), experts with the Ministry of Economy and Trade, the originator of the project told Ziarul Financiar.
"No inventory of these companies has been made yet, given that a meeting should be held among representatives of the Ministry of Economy and Trade, of the Finance Ministry, of the State Assets Resolution Authority (AVAS) and of the State Domains Agency to centralise all the companies whose shares will be offered as reparations. Many companies have not had their share capital reappraised since 1994 or 1997-1998 and an increase in their capital by using the differences resulted from the reassessment is a possibility. Their assets are worth 4 or 5 times more than the existing share capital," the originators of the draft say. "We will propose a set of modifications to Law 10/2001 on the legal status of certain buildings abusively seized by the communist regime between March 6, 1945 and December 22, 1989, which target the possibility to have these shares traded on a specially established market. The Economy Ministry is discussing it with the BSE and RASDAQ. What else are we to do? Award reparations at the nominal value of the shares when the shares may be worth several times more? This addresses another issue, as well. Who is to be given shares in case of oversubscription and who is not?" the quoted sources explain.
"We are in talks with the Ministry of Economy and Trade and with the Finance Ministry for having these shares traded on the Stock Exchange. There should be a market at first where such shares would be traded and then a market where such shares could be subscribed. Unfortunately, the Stock Exchange is now stuck with other issues such as the property rights over the Stock Exchange assets instead of how to develop its own business," says Siminel Andrei, co-chairman of the Joint Committee for the Development of the Bucharest Stock Exchange and of RASDAQ.
"The trading of these shares will set a specific value for them on the capital market based on the supply and demand ratio. Seeing how much a specific share is worth wi'll not be a problem with the companies to be listed on the Stock Exchange, yet there will be a problem with the unlisted companies," the quoted sources explain. The trading of the shares acquired by the former owners could also attract investors that will want to participate in the privatisation of the companies in question. Furthermore, the running of this operation on the capital market would help avoid acts of corruption among public servants.
Law 10 says that the property claimed shall be given back in kind, and, in case this cannot be done, reparations in form of goods and services, shares in companies traded on the capital market, nominal value shares used solely in the privatisation process or compensations in cash shall be awarded.
adrian.mirsanu@zf.ro ; vlad.nicolaescu@zf.ro
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