GPW Acquires Armenia Securities Exchange

• The Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW) has signed a Share Purchase Agreement with the Central Bank of Armenia (CBoA) to buy a 65,03% stake in the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX) from CBoA
• GPW and CBoA have signed a Shareholders’ Agreement regarding the participation of the contracting parties in AMX
• The signing ceremony was attended by representatives of Polish and Armenian authorities, including Marcin Przydacz, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

On 28 June 2022, during a ceremony in Yerevan, Marek Dietl, President of the Management Board of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW), signed a Share Purchase Agreement between GPW as the buyer and the Central Bank of Armenia (CBoA) as the seller of a majority stake in the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX) representing 65.03% of shares. CBoA was represented by Martin Galstyan, Governor of the Central Bank of Armenia. A Shareholders’ Agreement regarding the participation of the contracting parties in AMX was also signed in Yerevan between GPW and CBoA. The signing ceremony was attended by representatives of the Polish government: Marcin Przydacz, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Paweł Cieplak, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Poland to Armenia.

“We firmly believe that this transaction lays new foundations in Polish-Armenian relations as a clear expression of the 700-year history of mutual trust and respect that binds our two nations. Poland and the Warsaw Stock Exchange are helping Armenia to build economic relations with the West in small steps. We consider this investment as a long-term partnership. Our aim is to recreate with joint efforts the capital markets of Armenia and thrive to extend our business further into the region. We also expect to develop the capital markets infrastructure, creating opportunity for businesses to raise sustainable and affordable capital while enabling the investors and savers to manage their savings and investments more professionally within a wider range of investment products and opportunities,” said Marek Dietl, President of the Management Board of GPW.

The detailed development plan of AMX and the Armenian capital market is set out in the long-term development strategy of AMX, which was developed in co-operation with the EBRD and GPW. GPW intends to support the development of the capital market in Armenia by leveraging its 30 years of experience in building a capital market in Poland.

“We believe this to be an important milestone in the development of Armenian capital markets. Having found such a partner in the Warsaw Stock Exchange, realizing we have the same vision and similar aspirations, we believe this deal to be a turning point in the chronicles of capital markets in Armenia. Under the leadership of the Warsaw Stock Exchange, with their experience and knowledge, AMX has the full potential to expand and become the robust stock market ready to take up the challenges of the 21st century and lead the region,” said Martin Galstyan, Governor of the Central Bank of Armenia.

The joint-stock company AMX is the only stock exchange currently operating in Armenia (as the Armenia Securities Exchange from 2001 and as NASDAQ OMX Armenia since 2008). For more than 18 years, the exchange has been an organised securities market in Armenia, offering market professionals a fully automated electronic trading platform. The AMX Group’s core business is to organise trading in financial instruments and operate a depository and clearing house for trading in financial instruments in Armenia. The company is headquartered in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan. Currently listed instruments include equities, corporate and government bonds, currency, credit, as well as repos and swaps. AMX continues to work on introducing other organised markets. The Central Bank of Armenia is the supervisory and regulatory authority for the stock exchange and the Armenian capital market. AMX is a member of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges (FEAS) and the International Association of CIS Exchanges. Since 2008, AMX is also a member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Armenia.

As a result of the transaction, GPW will become the majority shareholder of AMX holding a block of 967 shares, representing a 65.03% stake in the company’s total share capital. CBoA will hold 372 shares representing a 25.02% stake in the company’s share capital. The remaining 9.95% i.e. 148 shares are AMX’s Treasury shares. In addition, GPW will indirectly take control of the Central Depository of Armenia (CDA), in which AMX currently holds a 100% stake.

On 18 September 2020, the GPW Management Board signed an agreement with the Central Bank of Armenia (CBoA) to negotiate the acquisition of a majority stake representing 65% of shares in the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX). On 19 May 2022, the GPW Management Board and the GPW Supervisory Board approved the acquisition of a 65.03% stake in the Armenia Securities Exchange. On 24 May 2022, during the World Economic Forum in Davos, Marek Dietl, President of the Management Board of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW), and Hayk Yeganyan, President of the Management Board of the Armenia Securities Exchange (AMX), signed a memorandum and initialled a Share Purchase Agreement setting out the terms of GPW’s acquisition of a majority stake in AMX. The agreement was initialled in the presence of Andrzej Duda, President of the Republic of Poland, and Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the Republic of Armenia.