Copenhagen Stock Exchange: New Energy To Danish Equities

The Copenhagen Stock Exchange presents a new arrangement of the marketplace for the small and medium-sized Danish shares. Two new segments and indices are expected to be launched: KMX MidCap and KSX SmallCap for the respectively small and medium-sized shares that distinguish themselves by high trading volumes, narrow spreads and high order frequency and by the submission of quarterly reports and the fulfilment of certain Investor Relations requirements.

A preliminary selection of companies based on figures from the first six months shows that 10 shares would be eligible for the KMX MidCap segment and 20 shares for the KSX SmallCap segment. In other words, these companies fulfil the requirements to liquidity, spread, order frequency and quarterly reports. We expect the number of companies in the new segments to grow before the introduction of KMX MidCap and KSX SmallCap. Several companies have the possibility of qualifying for instance by improving their information level or if they succeed in narrowing and thus improving the spread of the share.

"New energy to Danish equities" has been submitted for consultation in the public with a deadline of 1 November. Based on the comments we will receive, the Exchange will structure the final arrangement of the new segments. We expect to introduce the new SmallCap and MidCap segments during the spring of 2003.

The consultation document is available on the website of the Copenhagen Stock Exchange: www.xcse.dk

President and CEO Hans-Ole Jochumsen commented: "With New energy to Danish equities it is our ambition to strengthen the Exchange as a marketplace for the small and medium-sized Danish shares. The new segments KMX MidCap and KSX SmallCap will serve as models as regards liquidity, pricing and Investor Relations. The investors will furthermore be able to track the performance of the segments via new indices.

It is our belief that more focus on companies that make a special effort will result in more shares being eligible for the new segments and hence for inclusion in the indices. In this way, we not only render visible the companies that do extremely well already, but we also motivate more companies to strive towards an active life on the stock exchange. Basically, it is the company itself, which is responsible for the life of its share on the stock exchange. The Exchange will support the companies and serve as a catalyst for their efforts to strengthen the liquidity of their shares. Together we can give new energy to the Danish equity market."