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Central Europe
July 7, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 14
Also playing to the sentiment of the Polish admin- istration, Trump said borders must remain closed to “terrorism and extremism of any kind”. Poland’s government is at odds with the European Union – which Trump did not mention at all – over taking in refugees from Muslim countries. Warsaw claims that accepting refugees equals inviting radicals and puts citizens’ safety at risk from terror attacks.
Speaking from behind a bullet-proof glass screen by the monument to the Warsaw Uprising of 1944, Trump painted a picture of the West at war with ex- tremist forces. He hinted, however, that the US will remain a reliable ally standing “firmly behind Arti- cle 5 [of Nato], the mutual defence commitment”, while underscoring that European members of the alliance must pay their way as Poland was doing.
Polish debt collector GetBack prices IPO amid resurgent WSE trading
Wojciech Kosc in Warsaw
Polish debt collection company GetBack has set the price of its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) at PLN18.5 (€4.4) per share, the company said on July 5.
With 40mn shares on offer, the company’s offering is worth PLN740mn at the set price, which
is markedly lower than the PLN27 per share maximum price, set earlier by GetBack. The company expects to debut on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) on July 17.
After a stagnant couple of years, investors seem to have regained interest in the Warsaw bourse.
That came as a relief for some observers after Trump earlier in the day said he and Duda did not discuss security guarantees regarding the future of around 5,000 US troops currently deployed in Poland. Yet he stressed to the crowd that “these soldiers are not only brave defenders of free- dom, but also symbols of America’s commitment to your security and your place in a strong and democratic Europe”.
Trump’s speech was steeped in references to Po- land’s difficult history and also celebrated figures, with Copernicus, Chopin, and Pope John Paul II mentioned to waves of applause. In a passage that befitted the monumental location, Trump also spoke at length about the horrors of the 1944 uprising and the tenacity of the participants.
GetBack has priced its IPO against a backdrop of rekindled investor interest in trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
Share trading on the WSE's main equities market totalled PLN30.3bn (€7.1bn) in June, marking a jump of 80.2% y/y, the exchange said on July 5. June proved the eighth consecutive month in which equity trading recorded impressive growth. Trading expanded 65.7% y/y in May.
The Getback float will comprise up to 20mn new shares and up to 20mn existing shares that will be offered to retail and institutional investors. Following the sign-up process for retail investors and book building for institutions, 3mn shares will be offered to the former, while the institutional investors will take 37mn shares.