FOR OVER A YEAR, THE POLISH DEPOSITORY HAS BEEN TRYING TO CONNECT TO ROMANIA Iwona Sroka: "The listing of the Proprietatea Fund in Warsaw in six months - a very ambitious target"

Reporter: Last year, you were holding talks for the indirect connection to the Romanian Central Depository, through a custodian bank, due to the idea that the Proprietatea Fund is looking for the dual listing on the Vienna Stock Exchange. What happened to that plan?

Iwona Sroka: It is true, we have a completed agreement with a Romanian custodian bank, which is just waiting for the approval and the signature.

Unfortunately, in May 2012, the CNVM - the Romanian National Securities Commission, has officially informed us, that any connection by the KDPW to the Romanian market, either direct or indirect, violates some specific rules, and therefore, the plans of the KPDW to open a connection have to wait for the CNVM (or its successor) to bring amendments to the relevant provisions of the regulations.

Reporter: The shareholders of the Proprietatea Fund have approved the dual listing in Warsaw, but the operation is delayed by the unavailability of a connection between the depositories. What do you think is the problem?

Iwona Sroka: Like I said, the problem is not the absence of the connection, which can be set up relatively easy.

Rather, the problem is that the regulations of the CNVM do not allow us to set up a connection with the Romanian market.

The KDPW, together with other representatives of the Romanian market, have been talking to the CNVM since back in November in 2011 to get the approval for this connection.

Since then, the CNVM has begun the process for the modification of the regulations, especially the provisions concerning the management of nominee accounts through the Central Depository and through custodian banks for foreign entities.

Still, the progress in the implementation of the amendments is very slow.

Towards the end of 2012, the CNVM has published a proposal for the amendment of its Regulations and has invited the KDPW, together with other institutions to comment about it.

We did not receive information about the status of the approval of those amendments. Still, considering the fact that the CNVM is going through a restructuring process and that, even after the implementation of the amendments to the Regulations, the new provisions will need to be assimilated by the Central Depository and approved by the National Bank of Romania, we think that obtaining the authorization for a connection which will allow the listing of the Proprietatea Fund in Warsaw could be a very ambitious target.