NEW YORK-Poland is making an able attempt to “keep up with the Joneses,” the leading industrialized nations it joined two years ago as a member of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
OECD membership has compelled Poland to liberalize and deregulate its economy at a rapid pace, and has “increased the trust bestowed upon the country by international financial markets and investors,” said Janusz Kaczurba, deputy Economy minister, Oct. 14.
The same day, the Polish government set a price range of $840 million to $1.9 billion for its planned sale of 15 percent of Telekomunikacja Polska S.A., the national telecommunications carrier. Two-thirds of the shares will be sold to foreign institutional investors and one-third to domestic investors.
A final price for the initial public offering is scheduled to be announced Nov. 7, and shares of TPSA are set to begin trading by Nov. 20 on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.
Early next year, the federal treasury also plans to seek a strategic investor for an additional stake of between 25 percent and 35 percent in TPSA.
The partial privatization of TPSA is intended to demonstrate Poland “is a very safe place to invest,” said Alicja Komasiewics, the deputy Treasury minister in charge of the sale.
The Polish government announced the price range for the TPSA privatization IPO on the same day Donald Johnston, secretary-general of OECD, praised Poland’s economic measures.
“Policies that the government has adopted have been very effective in helping Poland withstand shocks that have affected so many emerging markets,” Johnston said.
“We have every reason to be optimistic about the prospect of the Polish economy.”
Johnston said he believes Poland’s economy will continue to grow while inflation and unemployment falls, provided its government executes an ambitious overhaul of under-funded pension and medical insurance systems and pares back heavy industries, like coal mining, that are losing money.
Part of the proceeds of the planned IPO are intended for use in restructuring the pension system and the coal industry.
