"In the future, we want to provide more consulting services and together with the companies analyze if a going public optimally matches the strategy, development story and financing needs of a company. In this manner, we want to make it easier for companies to go public through Wiener Börse," said Heinrich Schaller, new member on the management board of Wiener Börse AG since 1 June 2006. Wiener Börse will therefore address potential IPO candidates more frequently and actively support them in the IPO process. "Furthermore, we would like to see an improved tax and legal framework for a going public such as the abolition of the 1% tax on own funds paid into a company and the equal tax treatment of borrowed and equity capital," said Schaller.
More Employee Participation
To establish a culture of saving in stocks more firmly in Austria – only 17% of monetary assets in Austria are invested in stocks and investment funds, while the European average is almost twice as high at 32% – Wiener Börse would like to see more an attractive framework for the tax advantages of employee participation schemes. A survey conducted by Wiener Börse among the leading 20 companies listed on the prime market revealed 56% of the companies interviewed have an employee participation scheme. The companies interviewed spoke out in favor of doubling the tax exempt amount and a shortening of the holding period.
The goal of establishing an investment culture in Austria also requires the efforts of domestic investment banks. "At present, only one-sixth of the entire Austrian fund volume is invested in stock funds. We therefore appeal to Austrian investment management companies to invest more in stock funds," said Schaller.
Wiener Börse and the Bucharest Stock Exchange to Cooperate More Closely
Wiener Börse, which has been calculating and disseminating the ROTX Index jointly with the Bucharest Stock Exchange since March 2005, now acts as consultant for a creation of a derivatives exchange in Bucharest: "We provide the know-how and make sure that international standards are taken into consideration. We expect the introduction of an index-based futures contract in Romania as early as in 4Q of this year," said Michael Buhl, member of the management board of Wiener Börse AG. Furthermore, Wiener Börse – after the installation of the required infrastructure – will start the dissemination of all indices for the Bucharest Stock Exchange as of September 2006.
The index know-how of Wiener Börse is appreciated by investors throughout the world. Today, over 80% of all structured products worldwide relating to Eastern Europe are based on the indices of Wiener Börse. The most recent success story of Wiener Börse in this area: At the beginning of June, four new major license clients were acquired in North America: World Bank, Lehmann Brothers, Royal Bank of Canada and Wachovia Corporation. All four banks will issue products on the Eastern Europe indices of Wiener Börse, RTX and CECE.
