"MIFA's IPO underlines the significance of equity financing via the stock exchange as a financing option for smaller and medium-sized enterprises", said Rudolf Ferscha, member of the Executive Board of Deutsche Börse AG. "Deutsche Börse provides companies with efficient access to a wide investing community, thereby generating attractive financing and investment alternatives for companies and investors. We welcome MIFA as a new issuer and the first company to go public in General Standard", Ferscha added.
According to the company's own figures the Sangerhausen (Saxony-Anhalt)-based bicycle maker MIFA AG employed an average of 422 staff in fiscal year 2003 and produced approx. 535,000 bicycles for the German and European market. MIFA's initial public offering (IPO) was managed by Merck Finck & Co as the lead manager and Helaba Landesbank Hessen-Thüringen Girozentrale as joint lead manager. Seydler AG will function as designated sponsor for MIFA.
Issuers can choose between two clearly defined segments for the admission of their shares to the Frankfurt Stock Exchange - Prime Standard and General Standard. Statutory transparency requirements apply in General Standard. This segment is suited to companies that primarily target domestic investors and prefer a less costly listing. A listing in Prime Standard requires adherence to international transparency standards. This segment is tailored to the needs of companies who wish to attract global investors. There are currently around 360 companies listed in Prime Standard and around 490 (including MIFA) in General Standard.
