The Athens Stock Exchange is wooing the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE). Last week the Hellenic Exchanges (HELEX) gave a presentation at the BSE on the recently completed common trading platform of the Athens and the Cyprus exchanges, and urged BSE officials to consider closer regional collaboration.
“We are interested in process of privatization of government stake of BSE,” the CEO of HELEX is reported to have told BSE officials. But HELEX is not alone in expressing interest in the BSE; OMX, Deutsche Boerse, the Vienna Stock Exchange and Euronext are also interested.
HELEX says it is wiling to pay a fair price to the Bulgarian Government for the BSE but, if BSE prefers to retain its independence, says that it is still willing to co-operate on a regional basis.
Eurobank EFG, a leading private, investment and custodian bank in Athens, owns Postbank in Bulgaria, and could expect to benefit from a Greek-Bulgarian alliance of stock exchanges.