SHARES OF THE BUCHAREST STOCK EXCHANGE, HEAVILY SPECULATED BEFORE THE SELF-LISTING OF THE STOCK EXCHANGE "Dorinvest" wants to sell 7,000 shares of the BSE

• Dorin Dobre: If the BSE website had the option to display bids for BSE shares, you"d probably see me bidding as well

The Bucharest Stock Exchange seems to attract speculators lately, with demand for BSE shares far exceeding the offer, in spite of the rather turbulent times that the domestic capital market is facing lately.

Selling shares owned in the BSE can help struggling brokers raise cash, to help them through the difficult times while they wait for the recovery.

Brokerage firm "Dorinvest" last weekend put up for sale 7,000 ordinary BSE shares, for a price of 45 lei/share. "Dorinvest" is asking for the same price as brokerage firm "Trend", of Bacău, which is looking to sell 5,000 BSE shares at the same price of 45 de lei/share, after its previous offer of 25 lei/share, was oversubscribed.

"I feel that 45 lei/share is a fair price. The reason I"ve put up these shares is to first of all create a market for shares of the BSE, and to create turnover for them. The shares of the BSE should be actively traded", Dorin Dobre, chairman-general manager of brokerage firm "Dorinvest" said for our newspaper.

Mr. Dobre says that the Bucharest Stock Exchange is an "interesting" company, and is unlike any other investment opportunities on the market. The fact that the BSE is profitable regardless of how the stock market is doing, is one of the reasons why speculators are so interested in its shares, Mr. Dobre said.

"The BSE can very well survive and be profitable with just EUR 1 million/day, if its management cuts expenses. Let"s not forget that while we are currently in crisis, in the past years, the average daily turnover of the BSE could reach EUR 114 million", said the chairman of "Dorinvest". He said that selling part of his company"s shares in the Stock Exchange provides him with cash for times when commissions are low, and when trading recovers, he would buy back the shares.

"If the website of the BSE had the option to display bid prices for its shares, you"d probably find me among bidders as well, where I"m offering 30 lei/share", Mr. Dobre said.

The current asking price for shares of the BSE, proved attractive enough for rock singer Tudor Chirilă, who bought 14,000 of the BSE shares sold by brokerage firm "Trend", for 25 lei/share. Around the same time, Cristian Sima, the chairman of brokerage firm "WBS Romania", acquired over 7,200 BSE shares and later sold 10,000 BSE shares, for a price of 27 lei/share. Anca Bunea, General Manager of "WBS", acquired 7,000 BSE shares, at a price of 25 lei/share.