"Kommersant", 19 April, 2002 г.

Out of 16 million securities, 5.5 million were distributed at the RTS stock exchange, the rest were distributed in the MICE. RBK's shares will appear in the secondary market after the report of the primary distribution is registered in the Federal Commission of the Central Bank.

According to the general director of RBK, Mr. Rovensky, the company has managed to attract $13.28 million in total. So it managed to sell 16% of the shares $2 million cheaper than the sum, which was offered by a big Western investment fund for 100% of RBK's shares two years ago. Its capitalization amounted to $83 million, which equals the "conservative" estimation of its underwriter, Aton IC.

Contrary to the gloomy prognosis of the analysts from investment companies, RBK's shares have turned to be popular goods. Demand for them five times exceeded supply. Therefore Aton had to meet the demands in proportion of 20.66% of the preliminary order. At the same time according to the president of Aton IC, Mr. Yuryev, his company bought no RBK shares. The buyers are Russian banks. These are investment funds and insurance companies, which names are kept in secret. Prombiznesbank, Petrokommerz bank, Yamal fund as well as regional funds of the EBRD and the National Insurance Group were among those who bought the shares.

"We are sure that we invested our funds in good securities, which will grow by 40-50% in the first bid month up to $1.20', said the manager of the stock market administration of Petrokommerz bank, Mr. Vinogradov. "However I think that the liquidity of the securities will not be high at first, due to the small quantity of the shares in the market. The bought shareholdings are likely to be sold in the off-exchange market". According to Mr. Sklyarov, president of Yamal fund, which bought about 1 million of the company's shares, "the growth of the shares at first will be compared with the dynamics of ADR, issued by Wimm-Bill-Dann company". However many analysts doubt such an optimistic prognosis. Although the RBK's administration says these analysts are engaged, they time and again criticize the RBK's estimations given by its underwriters.

Thus, the members of the association, which spreads economic and financial information, for example, AK&M, Interfax, Prime-TASS and others, suppose that data about the RBK's share in the market of financial and economic information is smaller than it is announced. RBK sells information for $2 million. Aton and Alfa-Bank estimate this index at 25-30% and 65% correspondingly. It seems to be strange but the profit of Interfax only for selling economic and financial data exceeds $5 million per year, Prime-TASS collects $1.5 million.

The number of subscribers for business news also causes doubts. RBK states that there are 5 thousand of them. "Neither we, nor Reuters has so many subscribers", says the chairman of the board of directors of Prime-TASS, A.

Meleshko. And according to V. Gerasimov, the first deputy of the general director at Interfax, if these data turn not to represent the facts, investors will no longer trust the companies of the media sector. And it will possibly make IPO difficult for other participants of this market.

S. Kozitsyn