23 Dec 2004 11:41

Number of disclosure system members exceeds 5,000

The number of issuer companies, which are required to post reports about their major affairs on authorized news wires of the Federal Stock Market Service (FSMS), exceeded 5,000 on December 23.

The Federal Stock Market Commission (recently reorganized into FSMS) demanded compulsory release of information about major affairs on the wire of authorized news agencies, including Interfax, in October 2003.

The number of companies, which make up the disclosure system, has doubled and experts say that nowadays 80-90% of Russian issuers are meeting this requirement.

Every disclosure report received by Interfax is of unlimited access on the website www.e-disclosure.ru. It is also transmitted to the trading floors of the Moscow Inter-bank Currency Exchange (MICEX) and the Russian Trading System (RTS), as well as Internet broker systems.

Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Zhukov said in late October that investors had positively reacted to the new system. In the past the market received information about decisions of shareholders, deals and changes in the shareholder makeup with a delay of several weeks, and now the information is available to every Internet user almost on-line, he said.

"Interfax has done a very good job," Chairman of the State Duma Property Committee Viktor Pleskachevsky told a recent press conference. "Information about the majority of companies, which must publicize their activities, is available on the news agency website," he said.

The disclosure system has broadened accessible information about companies, Hermitage Capital Management Corporate Research Director Vadim Kleiner said. "We must thank the Federal Stock Market Commission for that," he said.

The Federal Stock Market Commission authorized disclosure of information by stock issuers with resolution #03-32/ps. The resolution says that issuers must publish information about major affairs and stock issue on the wire of authorized news agencies.