Teodor Ancuţa, the father of Sibex, predicts its death

Reporter: What do you think about the summoning of the General Shareholder Meeting for the disbanding of the Central Depository in order to have the Sibex group participate in the creation of the Central Counterparty?

Teodor Ancuţa: Anyone who will read the BURSA newspaper of May 16th, 2012, will see that I said that the days of the Depository of Sibex are numbered.

My opinion is that the officials of Sibex are trying to convince the shareholders that there is no desire to destroy Sibex like I have predicted since back on April 29th, 2011, when I was replaced with Cristian Sima.

I think that you could have easily called this article "The management of Sibex, ready to drop the spot and derivatives market" or "Sibex close to shutting down its gates".

Reporter: But you can't really call it a market with just two companies listed (the spot market of Sibiu only has two issuers).

Teodor Ancuţa: That is true, but in 2010, the year the spot market began, I succeeded in getting Sibex listed and to get Prodplast Imobiliare to trade on the ATS. The listing of Sibex on its own market was done before the BSE succeeded in doing the same.

Also, you know that there were talks at an advanced stage for the listing of ADEPLAST ORADEA and of companies in Cluj, Braşov and Hunedoara.

It is true that after the general shareholder meeting of December 15th, 2012, when they wanted to replace me with "Colombo" (ed. note: Dario Colombo), I also began wondering whether it was a good thing that 96.5% of the shareholders have participated in the share capital increase with 3.3 million Euros in December 2010.

I began wondering what will happen to the shareholders' money if the "putschists" succeeded in replacing me. 3.3 million Euros, the share capital increase, was probably Sima's "lamp".

In fact, BURSA, in its online edition of September 26th, 2012, wrote, quoting sources: "Cristian Sima intended to delist Sibex and the preferential compensation of the shareholders who were also the customers of WBS" - re-read the Sima and WBS plan.

Reporter: What do you think was your edge in that allowed you to persuade the shareholders to inject so much money in the company at the peak of the crisis, in 2010?

Teodor Ancuţa: First of all the growth of Sibex (dividends), the confidence, which was in fact validated, the fact that I did not betray for the 1 million Euros that Sima offered me, my working until exhaustion, my fairness and honesty.

How come the Warsaw Stock Exchange is a shareholder in Sibex rather in another exchange? And they paid 4 lei/share for our stock.

Mr. Ludwig Sobolevsky (ed. note: the former head of the Polish Stock Exchange) rang the bell for the first time at the opening of the Sibiu Stock Exchange (The Emirates Stock Exchange also wanted to buy 5% of Sibex, the Sofia Exchange would have developed the derivatives in cooperation with Sibex etc). There are many, many things that were done first in Sibiu instead of Bucharest, and many projects that were never completed. A small, well-managed group, achieved what nobody thought was possible, many things that were just as many premieres.

Reporter: Who do you think is to blame for the current state of Sibex?

Teodor Ancuţa: First of all, those who sold their votes, those who, in December, sided with me, and then, on April 29th, 2011, went over to Sima's side. They certainly did not do so for free. Besides, even Mr. Iordache (ed. note Mihai Iordache, a collaborator of our newspaper), who has almost never supported the Sibiu Exchange, wrote in article published in BURSA on July 30th, 2012: "What is the future of Sibex?"

According to my information, which is actually very accurate, (Sima) also extended an invitation for documentation abroad (to the SIFs).

And Mr. Iordache also wrote: "Once [Sima] was elected, all of his promises were completely forgotten, or worse".

Reporter: What is happening to the shares of Sibex? For almost two months, not one share was traded?

Teodor Ancuţa: The price of the shares reflects the evolution of the company.

From 1.70 lei in April, May, June 2011, when over six million shares were traded, now not even 10,000 shares at 0.80 lei can change hands.

The 27 million lei in cash - if they were paid to the shareholders that would amount to 0.80 lei/share - represent money which the shareholders can take away urgently. Similarly, if the share capital of the Romanian Clearing House, if it belonged to shareholders, it would make about 1 leu/share.

Moreover, out of 40 brokerages, we now only have about 15.

Reporter: Do you mean to say that it would be a good thing for Sibex, your creation to shut down?

Teodor Ancuţa: If you want my honest answer, I would urgently liquidate the three companies of the group, and I would pay out the money to the shareholders and I would not allow the "termites" to eat it away just like they did over the last two years.

Personally, I think that the General Shareholder Meeting will approve the closing down of the Depository, the SIFs will urgently take away their stakes, they will go with them to the Central Counterparty of Bucharest, which I think the NBR will also get involved in. The Romanian Clearing House of Sibex will be left without a job, and Sibex itself can not even find its purpose "in the void".

My personal opinion is that the General Shareholder Meetings should be summoned for the three companies for their disbandment, the return of the equity of the Depository and of the Clearing House to Sibex, their liquidation and the restitution of the money that is still left to the shareholders.

Reporter: That sounds a bit like: "I made it, now I will unmake it"?

Teodor Ancuţa: No, but I feel sorry for the shareholders who have stood by me for 17 years, the ones who built it brick by brick, the ones who invested their money and faith in Sibex, and now, like Mr. Iordache was saying, it has fallen apart.

Reporter: Will derivatives disappear in Romania, do you think that Sibex has no chance of survival?

Teodor Ancuţa: Everything will move to Bucharest and on this occasion I want to thank all those who have stood by my side for so many years and I hope that someone will punish those who have mocked the money and the work invested in these companies.

Reporter: Thank you!