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Russian exchange may opt for foreign partner strategy, but not merger - Voloshin

18.04.2011 08:08 / Interfax

The unified MICEX and RTS might work in a strategic partnership with other exchanges, but a merger or unification is not on the cards, head of MIFC taskforce Alexander Voloshin said on Sunday.

"It`s possible we`ll choose someone as a strategic partner, but we do not mean a merger or unification with anybody," Voloshin told reporters in Hong Kong.

The RTS 1 exchange agreed to join with the Russia`s other major exchange, the MICEX, this February. The parties plan to close the deal before the end of the second quarter this year. The Central Bank of Russia, which holds a 37% stake in the MICEX, will in two or three years divest itself of its capital holding in the unified exchange.

By way of example, Voloshin mentioned the model opted for by the New York Stock Exchange and Deutsche Boerse. "We have not had any such options with anybody, at least to this point. There could be an exchange of shares, but that is not a merger," he said.

"A strategic partnership could be accompanied by an exchange of minority stakes. Or perhaps not," he said.

The working group is interested in settlement experience on other exchanges, particularly in Hong Kong, Voloshin said. "The general plan is of interest to us: listing, converging regulation, cross-listing, combining clearing depository systems, interface universality and general information. There is definitely sense for us in cooperating with the Hong Kong exchange, they have great experience, they are dynamic and have enjoyed success," he said.

Trading infrastructureAlexander Voloshin