The Bucharest Stock Exchange announces the beginning of the dismantling of the Rasdaq

• Companies listed on the Rasdaq, asked to transfer to the BSE or to the Alternative Trading System

Without waiting for a final decision of the Romanian National Securities Commission (CNVM) on the statute of the Rasdaq, The Bucharest Stock Exchange has decided to "grab the bull by the horns" and has begun to send notifications to companies listed on the Rasdaq, inviting them to move to the Alternative Trading System (ATS), or to the main regulated market, for those that meet the requirements.

"The Board of Directors of the BSE has decided that we should take the initiative and try to attract as many of the companies listed on the Rasdaq over to the BSE, until the Romanian National Securities Commission reaches a final decision concerning the status of the Rasdaq market", sources in the management of the BSE said for BURSA.

Currently, the Rasdaq market has 1,395 companies listed, with capitalizations ranging from a few thousands to a few million lei. Some of these companies are insolvent, whereas others haven"t been traded in weeks or even months. When faced with the need to dissolve the Rasdaq tier, about which the authorities were reluctant to clearly state whether or not it is a regulated market, the management of the Exchange is now trying to save as many of the companies listed on it as possible.

Contacted by BURSA, the management of the exchange has explained that its actions were simply intended to be informative in nature and that they represent a first stage in a larger process which presents the benefits of being present on the stock market.

Anca Dumitru, the general manager of the BSE, declined to say how many of the 1,395 companies of the Rasdaq were selected by the Stock Exchange for transferring to the BSE and the ATS. The officials of the BSE had previously mentioned that some 300 companies of the Rasdaq met the requirements for being promoted to the regulated market, but the current crisis may have seriously affected the profit as well as the capitalization of those companies.

Right now, in order to be listed on the regulated market, a company needs to have a "free-float" greater than 25%, to have had a net profit for the last two operating years, and its equity for the last fiscal year needs to exceed 30 million Euros (for the first tier), and 2 million Euros for the second tier.

"The number of companies to which we have sent notifications is not relevant, our actions were simply intended to inform and advise, and represent the first stage in the campaign to promote the benefits of getting listed and of using the stock market for financing, for all the companies, regardless of their age and size, on the various types of markets that the BSE is managing. At the same time, we are also concerned with increasing the market"s transparency and protection", the general manager of the BSE said, who added: "The companies which are insolvent are not eligible for trading on any market, according to legal provisions. It"s only after the approval of the reorganization plan that their stock can be traded again. A low liquidity does not represent an eliminatory criterion for the CAN-ATS."

The Romanian National Securities Commission (CNVM) licensed the CAN-ATS alternative system of the BSE in mid-April this year. Even though it was initially advertised as an opportunity for companies not yet listed, which were looking to finance themselves using the stock market, the ATS was later promoted as an opportunity for companies that did not qualify for the regulated market, but which still wanted to remain listed, after the dismantling of the Rasdaq.

Anca Dumitru said that the BSE did not provide a deadline by which companies which received the invitation to transfer to the ATS should provide an answer.

"There is no deadline. Each company will decide if and when it will pass a certain decision", said Anca Dumitru.