NASDAQ OMX Vilnius Stock Exchange celebrates 15th anniversary

15.09.2008 VLN

Vilnius, September 15, 2008, The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ), announced today that the Vilnius Stock Exchange (VSE) celebrates 15 years since it held the first trading session. Today, 35 members trade in 41 listed companies and 27 bond issues at the Vilnius Stock Exchange.

Over fifteen years, the VSE has become more than just a local market. During the years of its operation, the stock exchange concentrated towards expanding its market offering to new customer groups. In May 2004, the VSE was incorporated into OMX Group and became a part of the common Baltic securities market. These changes enabled the VSE to provide Lithuanian market participants with the state-of-the-art trading technology, new services and products, such as pan-Baltic membership, new index family, information services, market data products, liquidity providers, global industry classification GICS etc. Visibility of the Lithuanian listed companies has increased as they became more exposed to the international investor community. As of February 2008, the Vilnius Stock Exchange is part of NASDAQ OMX, the world’s largest exchange company.

“This combination of two strong names was the most significant event of the recent year. For us becoming part of the NASDAQ OMX Group that delivers its services across six continents primarily means becoming more visible to the investors all around the world. In the long term perspective, the Baltic Market will benefit from the increased efficiency and liquidity that the merger brings to all of its markets. We are also able to offer new services and products to members, investors and issuers”, said Arminta Saladziene, the Chairwoman of the Management Board of the Vilnius Stock Exchange.

During the last 15th year of the Vilnius Stock Exchange operation the main focus was on the improvement and development of new services and offerings for the market participants. As a result the alternative market First North was launched, the new bonds submarket was created; the improvements of the market structure were introduced in line with the requirements of the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID), a new offering for listing and trading of investment funds’ units on the stock exchange was launched.

For the rest of 2008 the VSE will be mostly concentrated on developing new products, promoting investor awareness and transparency of the securities market. On October 2-4, 2008, the VSE together with the partners is organizing the first investment fair in Lithuania called Vilnius Invest 2008. In December, the Baltic Market Awards, an annual event organized for the third time, will take place in order to identify and encourage the best Baltic market participants and improve the overall standard of investor relations among listed companies.


Key statistics for the last 15 years:

• number of trades increased from 9 to 815 average per business day; in total -1.1 million of trades per 15 years
• total turnover of LTL 33.95 billion (EUR 9.8 billion); the average daily trading volume has grown from LTL 807 thousand (EUR 234 thousand) to LTL 8.85 million (EUR 2.6 million); 
•  total market capitalization augmented by 280 times from LTL 70 million (EUR 20 million) to LTL 19.6 billion (EUR 5.7 billion). 
•  local all share index OMX Vilnius augmented by 321% (from January 1, 2000)