* Shareholders likely to sell at least 90 pct stake in bourse
* Prague bourse sale to be completed by year end
* Prague bourse sale expected to boost competitiveness
(Adds background)
By Jana Mlcochova
PRAGUE, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Shareholders may sell a stake of
more than 90 percent in the Prague Stock Exchange (PSE) by the
end of the year, the bourse's biggest shareholder said on
Tuesday.
The PSE said earlier this month its shareholders, led by
investment bank Patria Finance with a 24.85 percent stake, are
looking for a partner to buy a majority stake and boost
development of the Czech bourse, which analysts value at up to 5
billion crowns ($307.9 million).
"According to my estimate we may get above 90 percent, which
confirms that the decision (to sell) is really a decision of the
majority," Patria's Chief Executive Jan Klenor said in a
telephone interview on Tuesday.
The process of completing the offer should be concluded in
the autumn and the bourse could be sold by the end of the year,
Klenor said.
He declined to comment on the value of the bourse which
analysts estimate at 4-5 billion crowns ($246.3-$307.9 million).
The Prague exchange has lagged its much larger Polish rival
in recent years, managing to pick up trading volume but only six
new listings in the past decade.
Its main SPAD trading segment lists 14 stocks and has a
market capitalisation of $113.6 billion, including two secondary
listings of Austrian financial stocks worth $29.7 billion.
"The interest (in the PSE) is there and since the Prague
bourse is relatively small, shareholders decided that they will
sell," Klenor said.
"It may be a surprise but you can see that Warsaw bourse
should be privatised by the end of the year, Budapest is sold...
and also the Prague bourse must follow this development so that
it can compete with these bourses in the future."
Klenor would not comment on potential bidders, saying it was
up to the adviser on the sale, Goldman Sachs, to be in touch
with them.
Earlier this month, a source close to the Warsaw Stock
Exchange told Reuters the Polish bourse is interested in bidding
for its Prague peer to expand its presence in central and
eastern Europe emerging markets.
The Vienna bourse has said it may bid for the Czech exchange.
Other potential bidders include Deutsche Boerse <DB1Gn.DE> and
OMX Nordic Exchange <NDAQ.O>.
Other major shareholders of the PSE, apart from Patria,
include Komercni Banka <>, a unit of Societe Generale
<SOGN.PA>, which is also considering selling its 11.51 percent.
Erste Bank's <> <ERST.VI> Czech unit Ceska
Sporitelna holds 14.7 percent and venture capital fund Tiger
Holding Four controls 13.5 percent, according to PSE's 2007
annual report.
The bourse's biggest stock is power firm CEZ <>,
central Europe's largest company with a market capitalisation of
over $44.8 billion.
Last year, shares worth 1,013 billion crowns ($65.51
billion) and bonds worth 509 billion changed hands on the
exchange. The PSE group, which includes an electricity exchange
and settlement firms, made a net profit of 198 million.
(Editing by Elaine Hardcastle)
