A cross-border corporate team at international legal practice Norton Rose LLP has advised the Polish State Treasury of the Republic of Poland on the initial public offering (IPO) and listing of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) on its own trading platform. The trading of the listed shares started on Tuesday (9 November 2010) and shares were finally allocated on Thursday 4 November 2010.
The WSE listed its shares on its own exchange and has conducted a public offering within Poland.
At the offer price for institutional investors the WSE has a market capitalisation of EUR486m (PLN 1,9bn). The State Treasury of the Republic of Poland as the selling shareholder raised EUR 304m (PLN 1,2bn) in the offering. The transaction did not involve offering of new shares by the Warsaw Stock Exchange itself.
Piotr Strawa, head of the Norton Rose Piotr Strawa and Partners LP office in Warsaw commented:
“This is the second largest IPO we have recently advised on in Poland. We advised Tauron Polska Energia on its listing earlier in the year and both have been strategically important transactions for the Polish government. Warsaw is now one of the largest national stock exchanges in Central Eastern Europe and one of the fastest-growing exchanges in Europe”.
Tom Vita, leader of the US corporate team at Norton Rose LLP, commented:
“This is the second landmark Polish listing we have successfully advised on this year. Transactions such as this show the continuing appeal of our platform, which is one of a relatively small number that can truly advise on Polish, English and US law aspects of these complex transactions.”
Tim Marsden, group head of corporate at Norton Rose Group, said:
“This is another very significant IPO for the Norton Rose LLP team, following on from our advice earlier in the year for the two successful IPOs: Tauron Polska Energia, one of the largest power companies in Poland and Jupiter Fund Management, one of the UK’s best known fund managers. It is rewarding we are getting these deals to market in what has been an extremely difficult period for many companies and their major shareholders considering IPOs”
The Norton Rose Group team on the WSE IPO was led in Warsaw by Piotr Strawa with support from Agnieszka Stankiewicz, Tomasz Rogalski and Agnieszka Braciszewska from Norton Rose Piotr Strawa and Partners LP and in London by Tom Vita who provided US advice assisted by Omiyinka Doris and Adriana Maestas, and Julian Stanier who provided UK advice assisted by Kathy MacDonald, from Norton Rose LLP.
A&O acted for the Warsaw Stock Exchange. Weil, Gotshal & Manges acted for the underwriters, which include Citi, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan and UBS.
Norton Rose Group has recently advised on the following successful international IPO listings:
- Warsaw Stock Exchange
- Tauron Polska Energia, one of the largest ever Polish IPOs and one of the largest IPOs internationally to have listed in 2010
- Jupiter Fund Management plc, one of the UK’s best known fund managers with assets under management of £19.5 billion
- Schrammm Holding AG, the first German AG share listing on the Hong Kong stock exchange
