10-04-2008

Polsat Cyfrowy IPO could raise 1bn zloty

By

    Polish pay-TV operator Cyfrowy Polsat will offer up to 75 million shares in an initial public offering set for May that could raise more than 1 billion zloty (€289.7 million).It will be the largest IPO by a privately held company on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

    The prospectus released Thursday (April 10) and described on the company website (www.cyfrowypolsat.pl) said private investors can sign up for shares from April 14-24. The share price range is 10.80 to 13.80 zloty and the final price will be set on April 25.

    The IPO represents about 28% of capital in the company, whose main shareholder is media chief Zygmunt Solorz-Zak.through an investment vehicle called Polaris Finance.

    The company had postponed its IPO twice due to turbulent market conditions, but said now is the right time to go public.

    "In our opinion the company is at an optimal moment as regards its debut on the stock exchange," CEO Dominik Libicki said in a statement, noting that Cyfrowy Polsat leads Polish satellite platforms by market share with nearly 2.2 million subscribers.