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GPW SAWSE wants to attract new issuers, Zabka's IPO may help with it, says GPW's CEO
The Warsaw Stock Exchange wants to attract new issuers and Polish convenience store chain Zabka Group's initial public offering may help to do so, the CEO of WSE operator GPW Tomasz Bardzilowski assessed during Zabka's debut on Thursday morning.
"Zabka's IPO is a landmark moment for the WSE, it opens a new chapter in which we will want to follow Zabka's example in attracting new issuers to the Warsaw Stock Exchange. I am convinced that the success of Zabka's IPO, a huge transaction, the biggest on our market for years and in Europe for many months, is a success for the Polish and European capital markets," Bardzilowski said.
"It shows that the market is fulfilling its role and will help us to attract new issuers. Individual investors also signed up for Zabka's IPO - it is important for them to see the opportunity on the stock market to build their savings, and the stock market is a symbol of development and a big part when it comes to growth and savings for individual investors," he added.
Zabka Group made its debut on the WSE on Thursday.
The share price of Zabka Group rose by 6.98 percent to PLN 23 (EUR 5.35) at the opening, on the first day of trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
"Zabka is a huge IPO, which happens once every few years (...), but I hope we will see more transactions," GPW's CEO Bardzilowski stressed.
The group's public offering included the sale of 300 million existing shares (excluding over-allotment shares). The share sale price for individual and institutional investors was set at PLN 21.5 (EUR 5.01), at the maximum level of the price range of PLN 20-21.5 (EUR 4.66-5.01) per share.
Based on the final determined share price in the offering, the value of the offering was PLN 6.45 billion (EUR 1.5 bln) and the value of the entire company was PLN 21.5 billion (EUR 5 bln). This is the largest IPO on the WSE since Allegro's debut in 2020.
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