SOFIA, May 14 (Reuters) - Bulgaria's industrial conglomerate Chimimport plans to raise up to 200 million levs ($138.7 million) by issuing 90 million new preferential shares to fund its operations, it said on Thursday.
The holding will use the proceeds to boost the capital of its financial unit, Central Cooperative Bank Group and its river shipping company, as well as for the upgrade of river and sea ports it runs under concession.
The new, seven-year, 9 percent guaranteed cumulative dividend shares will be open for subscription until May 29, said Alexander Kerezov, deputy chairman of the managing board of the holding, which is a component of the blue chip SOFIX index.
Trade in the new issue, which is likely to boost the market capitalisation of Chimimport to about 540 million levs, is expected to start on June 22 on the Sofia bourse.
'We chose the preferential shares as they are more attractive in times of crisis,' Kerezov said.
Bulgaria, like its central and eastern European neighbours, has been hard hit by the global financial crisis, and its stock exchange capitalisation has dropped more than 60 percent to 11 billion levs in the year to May.
Chimimport shares have lost about 80 percent of their value since last May due to the global crisis. They traded at 2.223 levs per share on Thursday at 1015 GMT, 1.2 percent down from Wednesday's close.
Chimimport's consolidated assets stood at 3.3 billion levs at the end of 2008, up from 2.7 billion a year earlier. Its profit rose 5 percent to 143 million levs last year.
(Reporting by Tsvetelia Ilieva, editing by Will Waterman)
($1=1.442 Leva) Keywords: CHIMIMPORT ISSUE/ (tsvetelia.ilieva@thomsonreuters.com; +359-2-939-97-31; Reuters Messaging: tsvetelia.ilieva.reuters.com@reuters.net)) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
The holding will use the proceeds to boost the capital of its financial unit, Central Cooperative Bank Group and its river shipping company, as well as for the upgrade of river and sea ports it runs under concession.
The new, seven-year, 9 percent guaranteed cumulative dividend shares will be open for subscription until May 29, said Alexander Kerezov, deputy chairman of the managing board of the holding, which is a component of the blue chip SOFIX index.
Trade in the new issue, which is likely to boost the market capitalisation of Chimimport to about 540 million levs, is expected to start on June 22 on the Sofia bourse.
'We chose the preferential shares as they are more attractive in times of crisis,' Kerezov said.
Bulgaria, like its central and eastern European neighbours, has been hard hit by the global financial crisis, and its stock exchange capitalisation has dropped more than 60 percent to 11 billion levs in the year to May.
Chimimport shares have lost about 80 percent of their value since last May due to the global crisis. They traded at 2.223 levs per share on Thursday at 1015 GMT, 1.2 percent down from Wednesday's close.
Chimimport's consolidated assets stood at 3.3 billion levs at the end of 2008, up from 2.7 billion a year earlier. Its profit rose 5 percent to 143 million levs last year.
(Reporting by Tsvetelia Ilieva, editing by Will Waterman)
($1=1.442 Leva) Keywords: CHIMIMPORT ISSUE/ (tsvetelia.ilieva@thomsonreuters.com; +359-2-939-97-31; Reuters Messaging: tsvetelia.ilieva.reuters.com@reuters.net)) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2009. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.