Polyus ready to list in the UK, says boss chief
RUSSIAN firm Polyus Gold is ready for a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange if market conditions remain as they are, according to the boss of a company with a blocking stake in the miner.
Dmitry Razumov, chief executive of Onexim group, said: “We are heading towards the premium listing and will definitely get it.”
Razumov’s bullish comments came just days after an investment committee chaired by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said it would not consider approval for the Polyus move until 2012.
Razumov said the company, part controlled by tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov (pictured right), will not proceed with listing only if there is “a total collapse [of the global market].”
But if market conditions hold steady, Polyus will hold the listing and its shares will be included in the FTSE 100 index, which is essential for “an adequate valuation” in the eventuality of M&A activity.
Polyus said in October it had failed to win approval from the Russian government for its proposed move to London’s prestigious FTSE 100 index because the government commission that evaluates potential foreign investment in Russia had delayed a decision.
Meanwhile Prokhorov himself has been under the spotlight after a high profile fall out with the Kremlin.
He suddenly left Russian politics over an acrimonious clash with the Kremlin ahead of parliamentary elections in December and the presidential vote in March.
Analysts say Polyus still faces hurdles over its London listing, with its board due to meet on 6 December to hammer out the details.