2015-05-28 12:28:37

"Capital for Growth" - Gdańsk

Warsaw, 28 May 2015

"Capital for Growth" - Gdańsk

PRESS RELEASE

  • GPW and partners have launched in Gdańsk the project "Capital for Growth": a series of 16 regional meetings on funding available to companies and local governments with the support of the capital market
  • Poland can use EUR 82.5 billion under the EU cohesion policy by 2020. Companies and local governments which apy for funding must bring in their own contribution, which they can raise, among others, on the capital market

The Warsaw Stock Exchange in partnership with the Marshals of the Regions, the Central Securities Depository of Poland (KDPW), Bank PKO BP, Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego and Polish Investments for Development have launched a series of 16 regional meetings in Poland's biggest cities. The Ministry of Treasury and Pracodawcy RP are the project patrons. The inaugurating meeting devoted to capital raising opportunities available on the capital market in the context of the EU perspective 2014-2012 took ace in Gdańsk on 27 May.

"In the last budget perspective, we proved that we can make good use of European Union funding. In the current perspective, where a record amount of EUR 82.5 billion is available for investments of Polish companies and local governments, we should look for the most efficient and flexible ways of using the subsidies to ensure that co-financed projects provide higher returns. Such opportunities are available on the capital market centred around GPW. Today, it is used as a financing tool by only about one thousand companies and slightly more than 40 local governments and co-operative banks. On the other hand, investment funds have significant cash to invest in safe and stable instruments. This demonstrates the huge potential to be unlocked in the Polish capital market," said Włodzimierz Karpiński, Minister of Treasury, who is the honorary patron of the series of meetings.

"The economic success of Poland would not have been possible without the dynamically developing capital market. As a result, in the last 25 years, the Warsaw Stock Exchange has become one of the biggest exchanges in this part of Europe. The range of instruments offered by GPW provides great opportunities of raising capital. Coued with the experience and proposals of our Partners, it represents an attractive offer for companies and local governments of all sizes. In the 'Capital for Growth' project we want to introduce them to the opportunities available on the Polish capital market," said Paweł Tamborski, President of the Management Board of the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

Listed companies from the Pomeranian Region which emoy more than 250 peoe each represent 11% of the registered in Poland companies of that size. Those companies are important contributors to the Region's economy. The share of revenue of listed companies in total revenue of non-financial companies in the Pomeranian Region is estimated at 23 percent. This is due to the presence of flagship Polish listed companies in the Region, including the Lotos Group and Energa. With PLN 55 million, the Pomeranian Region ranks second after the Mazovian Region by revenue earned by listed companies.

The average share of listed companies in total capital expenditures of companies in the Pomeranian Region is no less than 38.4 percent (mainly due to the big projects imemented by the Lotos Group and Energa), the highest share in Poland.

In 2013, listed companies in the Pomeranian Region made the third biggest contribution to the CIT and PIT revenue of local governments at PLN 165 million, representing 7 percent of the total revenue.

In the "Capital for Growth" project, the Management Board of the Warsaw Stock Exchange and the Partners meet with companies and local governments interested in raising growth funding, among others in the context of EU subsidies. Participants of the meetings will find out, among others, how to effectively raise funding in the EU perspective 2014-2020 and how companies and local governments can finance their own contribution on the capital market.

The meetings afford an opportunity to exchange opinions with capital market experts and to establish business relations. Participants can attend panel discussions on how to use capital market instruments in order to finance growth of companies and local governments. The PwC report "Capital Market as a Tool of Financing the Development of Polish Regions" will be presented at the meetings.

The next meeting takes ace in Bydgoszcz on 28 May. The series of meetings closes in November 2015.

More information about the project and the schedule of the meetings in regional capitals will be available on the website www.gpw./kdr

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The Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW) is the biggest securities exchange in Central and Eastern Europe. GPW operates a regulated market of shares and derivative instruments and the alternative stock market NewConnect for growing companies. GPW is developing Catalyst, a market for issuers of corporate and municipal bonds, as well as commodity markets. Since 9 November 2010, GPW is a public company listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. For more information visit http://www.gpw.

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