Moldova Agroindbank shareholders endorse listing on Bucharest bourse

The shareholders voted to approve the proposed admission of MAIB shares to trading on the main market, capital securities sector - international shares category of the Bucharest Stock Exchange, it said in a statement on Wednesday.

The stock holders also voted in favour of registering the bank's shares with Romania's Financial Supervisory Authority, ASF, and the Romanian Central Depository.

"Successful listing of MAIB shares on the international stock exchange would be an important achievement not only for the bank, but for the whole country – as it would place Moldova under the spotlight of investors and attract foreign capital to the country," MAIB board chairman Vytautas Plunksnis said.

At the end the end of the third quarter 2022, MAIB held 36.3% of the Moldovan banking market, compared to 20.3% held by its nearest competitor, Plunksnis added.

"The listing will have numerous benefits for us and our clients - improved access to capital; less expensive funding costs, further improved transparency, better investor communication and better corporate governance. Last but not least, it will also open the door for other Moldovan businesses to integrate into international capital markets, which will benefit the entire country," MAIB chairman of the management committee, Giorgi Shagidze, said.

The head of ASF Nicu Marcu announced in September that MAIB was in talks with authorities to have its shares listed on the Bucharest bourse.

MAIB is the largest systemic bank in Moldova with total assets of 40.6 billion lei ($2.1 billion/ 2 billion euro) at the end of September, according to data published by the country's central bank.

Moldova Agroindbank is 41.09% owned by HEIM Partners, a consortium of investors comprising the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Horizon and Invalda, according to its website. Other minority shareholders include management, staff and local companies. MD Partners and the EBRD each hold 37.5% of the shares of HEIM Partners, while US-based Emerging Europe Growth Fund III, managed by Horizon Capital, owns a 25% stake.

In May, the EBRD said that together with the European Union is is providing a loan of up to 50 million euro ($50.03 million) to MAIB, for on-lending to local companies directly or indirectly affected by the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine.

(1 euro=19.6909 lei)