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- Armenian government has announced details of support for the development of the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX)
- The plans include subsidies and concessions for companies which issue shares and/or bonds on the Armenia Securities Exchange
- The Warsaw Stock Exchange acquired a majority stake in AMX in December 2022
During the 7th Meeting of the Polish-Armenian Intergovernmental Committee for Economic Cooperation, which took place at the end of June 2023, Armenia’s Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan announced the intention to assist the development of the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX). The Armenian government’s recently announced support package focuses on comprehensive measures to encourage companies to join the capital market by issuing shares and bonds
“Friendly regulation creates a good climate for the development of the Armenian capital market. It sets an example for other markets by showing that even relatively small capital markets can be very competitive if they are supported by good regulations,” said Marek Dietl, President of the Management Board of the Warsaw Stock Exchange. “Such positive support of all stakeholders for the success of this project only confirms that our decision to invest our expertise and funds in Armenia was correct.”
“From the perspective of the Armenian securities exchange, this is a very good step towards helping the development of the capital market in Armenia; we hope that it will not be the last,” said Grzegorz Kucharski, AMX Management Board Member and Chief Strategy Officer. “We are delighted with the efforts made by the Government of the Republic of Armenia to achieve a common goal, and with the cooperation at different levels between governmental bodies, the Central Bank of Armenia, and the authorities of AMX.”
The bond market assistance project includes support for the placement and trading of bonds issued in Armenian Drams (AMDs) with a maturity of at least 36 months at issue, placement and listing at 2% of the issue value (but not more than AMD 30 million), and 3% of the issue value after listing (but not more than AMD 45 million) per year over a three-year period. The target group of the initial phase of the assistance project includes companies which have undergone external audits, in particular, audit firms with an international reputation that are more likely to meet the requirements of a bond issue.
In the context of issuing shares, the Armenian government offers to cover the costs of companies’ external audits, banking and stock exchange services related to the issuance, placement and listing of shares in a
one-off payment at 80% of incurred and documented costs. After listing, the government will refinance 50% of the cost of obtaining and maintaining a rating (80% for companies listed on AMX).
In December 2022, the formal conditions were met for GPW to acquire 65.03% of shares in the Armenia Securities Exchange from the Central Bank of Armenia (CBA). In March 2023, the new AMX Supervisory Board, jointly agreed by GPW and CBA, was appointed at the AMX Extraordinary General Meeting. Mateusz Zawistowski, representing GPW, was elected Chairman. The Management Board of the Armenian Exchange was also appointed, including Grzegorz Kucharski who has worked at the Warsaw Stock Exchange for the past 27 years.
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The Warsaw Stock Exchange Group (GPW Group) operates trading platforms for shares, Treasury and corporate bonds, derivatives, electricity and gas, and provides indices and benchmarks including WIBOR and WIBID. The index agent FTSE Russell classifies the Polish capital market as a Developed Market since 2018. The markets operated by the GPW Group are the biggest in Central and Eastern Europe. For more information, visit www.gpw.pl
