| Speaker | Mr. Ludwik Sobolewski, President of the Warsaw Stock Exchange |
|---|---|
| Moderator | Professor Shinichi Hirota （Faculty of Commerce, Waseda Univ.） |
| Date | 24 April 2009 |
| Time | 14:45-16:15 |
| Venue | Room 302, Bldg. 26, Waseda Univ. |
| Language | English |
| Note |
Professor HIROTA introduced Mr. Ludwik SOBOLEWSKI, President of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) from Poland, who gave the first lecture held by the EUIJ at Waseda after its official opening.
Mr. SOBOLEWSKI has been engaged in the activities of the WSE from the early stages of its development, making a significant contribution to the success of the Polish Stock Market. Since 1994, he has been serving as an advisor on the management of the WSE, and has been working as President of the WSE since 2006. He is also an expert consultant serving on many parliamentary commissions, and has written numerous books and articles on capital markets and corporate law.
The lecture lasted about an hour, and after that a Q & A session followed. Mr. SOBOLEWSKI's lecture could be summarized as follows.
After the Second World War, the economic system in Poland was socialist, influenced by communism until the new challenges which emerged in 1989. In 1989, Poland replaced the socialist system with modern capitalism through a number of processes. Within the Central and Eastern Europen (CEE) region, the Polish market is the largest, and the country was the first to have attempted the transition. Although many processes are still in progress, many of the new formations have been successful.
The market in Poland, the biggest in the region, supporting a large territory and population, has its own dynamics and if compared to the western countries, it is growing 3 to 4 times faster. As Polish GDP is essentially based on internal demand, 60% through consumer spending and 40% through exports, the global crisis has not had a serious impact.
In Poland, only the WSE is able to allow companies to raise money through the public market. The number of companies listed is the highest, and besides the classical financial instruments such as shares or bonds, it handles various types of resources such as derivative products. In Poland, the market capitalization of all the companies listed constitutes more than 50% of its national GDP, and although the volume of trade in Warsaw is less than that in Vienna, it is expected that Poland will become no.1 very soon, and consolidate its position as an important part of the international market place. Globalization and the tremendous progress in technology enabled Poland to develop financial services in a unified market within the European Union. Everybody may compete for the same investors and the same capital. There are already 26 international companies listed on the WSE, and if someone is interested in developing a portfolio or assets attached to the region, he/she should be able to buy everything he/she needs through a single institution, and the WSE is attempting to become that institution. The WSE sets standards of corporate governance, handles liquidity programs, develops the quality of investor relationships, monitors the quality and provenance of information, and is interested in how the professional information issued by analysts is used by the media.
The WSE provides companies with not only capital but also many of these instruments. A lot of these projects are related to intellectual capital. If the WSE wants to attract new capital or new customers, it has to be innovative because everything in society is based on knowledge and innovation, human capital and education. Invisible assets can be difficult to identify, but everything must be measured in order to be evaluated, as investments in intangibles are becoming increasingly important.
When advising investors, the WSE should not evaluate the company only by considering the fruit, but also the roots of the tree under the ground. Evaluation from a historical perspective is very important, and this could be done by looking at the potential under the surface. A company's competitiveness is better predicted through a medium to long-term 5-10 year perspective.
What the WSE provides is not only information but also "know-how", methodology. Using the instruments of the WSE would be advantageous for both companies and investors, in controlling business, selecting companies to invest in and meeting the expectations of investors, which function as standards for maintaining respect for corporate governance rules. Education will always be crucial to the cultivation and enhancement of intellectual capital in Poland, education which will benefit both investors and the public.
In the question and answer session, the following questions were asked;- Are there any other stock exchange systems in the world that also focus on human and intellectual capital?
-Any self-assessment by the company gives room for manipulation. How are you addressing that possibility?
-Do you have any sanction system to deter companies from submitting inaccurate reports about intellectual capital?"
After the session was over, many audience members remained to talk to the lecturer. The theme was very interesting for researchers of the area, and the initiatives that the WSE is attempting seemed cutting-edge.