Has Istanbul entered the competition to be the leading exchange in eastern Europe?
Friday, 19 November 2010
The London Stock Exchange has attracted many foreign listings from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan; Ludwik Sobolewski, chief executive of the WSE, says London is his model. But he also sees a parallel with Turkey. The Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) has been successful at providing liquidity for local companies: it has nearly double the market capitalisation and five times the turnover of the WSE. The ISE is still state-owned, and like the WSE has not managed to extend its sphere of influence much, apart from stakes in the exchanges of Kyrgyzstan and Azerbaijan. But it will break new ground on December 2nd with its first foreign listing, of Do & Co, an Austrian catering company, which will do a simultaneous issue in Vienna. Has Istanbul entered the competition to be the leading exchange in eastern Europe?