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The Estonian company Olympic Entertainment Group AS (OEG) had its IPO on the WSE Main List on 26 September 2007. It is, at the same time, the second Estonian company at the WSE and the sixth foreign company to debut in Warsaw this year. As of today, 17 of enterprises quoted on the WSE Main List are based abroad – in Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Hungary, Israel, Luxemburg, the Netherlands, Slovakia, Spain, Ukraine and the USA.
Olympic Entertainment Group is the largest casino operator in the region. Under the “Olympic Casino” trade mark, there are currently 105 casinos in Estonia, Poland (7 casinos), Lithuania, Latvia, Romania, Belarus and Ukraine. Since October 2006, shares of the company have been quoted on the Tallinn exchange (part of the OMX group).
The decision of a second Estonian company to list on the WSE is a confirmation of the attractiveness of the Polish market for enterprises in this part of Europe. It is also the result of promotional activities of the Warsaw trading floor, which have been carried out in the CEE region as part of our far-reaching endeavour to create a financial hub for Central and Eastern Europe in Warsaw. As an effective market with low entry costs and the capacity to meet the financing requirements of even the largest companies, the WSE offers an exceptional possibility of accelerating the growth of WSE-listed companies. For the past years, this fact is being noted by an increasing number of Polish and foreign companies which, in terms of the number of IPOs, ranks the WSE among European leaders and at the top of the list, in the CEE region.
The main goal of the WSE for the coming years is to build a regional financial centre in Warsaw. To make this possible, the WSE strives to engage the advantages of both the Polish market and the whole economy. Among deciding factors for foreign companies to list in Warsaw is a stable and diversified investor base which guarantees access to capital. It increases also the probability of a successful IPO as well as an attractive share valuation at debut and during subsequent trading sessions. The significance of these factors was stressed by Mr Andri Avila, OEG Chief Operating Officer, who said that listing shares on the biggest stock exchange in the region will increase their availability to foreign investors.
The fact that Estonian companies choose the Warsaw trading floor is a source of distinct satisfaction for the WSE. Estonia, whith double-digit economic growth rates, is not only a regional but also an European leader in this respect. In 2006, as the Estonian GDP increased more than 11%, the country was the European leader. The fact that the fastest growing economy in Europe has chosen the most dynamically developing stock exchange in the region is a sign of a new economic reality in this part of Europe.
