MICEX Group to approve stock options program by year's end
MOSCOW. Nov 23 (Interfax) - The board of directors of CJSC MICEX will consider a stock options program for the management of the MICEX Group before the end of this year, group head Ruben Aganbegian told Interfax.
"The exchange's human resources committee has already considered the issue of the options program, it remains for the board of directors to make a decision," he said.
The options program will initially extend to 50 key executives of the group, Aganbegian said.
"Setting aside up to 5% of CJSC MICEX shares for the options program was discussed with shareholders and the board of directors taking into account that the program is being launched for many years into the future, not for one time," Aganbegian said.
The boards of merging exchanges MICEX and RTS earlier authorized the MICEX Group to borrow 4 billion rubles, which MICEX said were needed to buy CJSC MICEX shares for its stock options program.
Aganbegian said the loan has not been obtained yet.
The loan was to be obtained by LLC MICEX Finance, which is owned by CJSC MICEX. Sources said earlier that MICEX Finance would use part of the loan to pay off a loan from CJSC MICEX that was used in May to buy RTS shares from investment bank KIT Finance . Some of the money was also earmarked to buy shares in CJSC MICEX that the latter acquired in a mandatory buyback offer to shareholders opposed to the merger with RTS.
RTS and MICEX shareholders signed a frame agreement on June 29 to merge the exchanges. Shareholders approved RTS' merger into MICEX at extraordinary general meetings on September 5, and the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service approved the deal on September 9. The legalities of the merger are scheduled for completion by December 19.