News
Official Celebrations of GPW’s 30th Anniversary
PRESS RELEASE
- GPW celebrates today the 30th anniversary of its inaugurating session
- President of Poland Andrzej Duda is a guest of honour of the event
- Deputy Prime Ministers Jacek Sasin and Jarosław Gowin have addressed the attendees
- The conference agenda includes five panel discussions with speakers engaged in the development of the Polish capital market
- President of Poland Andrzej Duda is the patron of today’s event and the year-long celebrations of GPW’s 30th anniversary
The official celebrations of the 30th anniversary of the inaugurating session on the Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW) have opened today as President of Poland Andrzej Duda rang the bell to open the trading session.
“Poland has changed beyond recognition in the last 30 years. GPW and everyone who has contributed to the functioning of a safe and fair market deserve credit for building up the Polish economy … We have the biggest exchange in Central and Eastern Europe. I wish GPW to become even stronger and bigger, a leading exchange both in Europe and globally,” said President of Poland Andrzej Duda who inaugurated the celebrations of GPW’s 30th anniversary.
“The exchange is inextricably linked with the economy. The exchange cannot be expected to grow strong, liquid and innovative without a fast growing economy. The development of our exchange mirrors steps in the evolution of Poland’s economy. Exchanges have transformed from equity trading venues into technology companies offering sophisticated services in different sectors of the financial industry. It is our aspiration to position our exchange in those megatrends as the CEE technology hub,” said Marek Dietl, President of the GPW Management Board.
The event brings together high-ranking representatives of public authorities as well as institutions and companies engaged in the development of the Polish capital market. Panel discussions dedicated to GPW’s history and future feature among others CEOs of listed companies. Participants of the Polish capital market discuss GPW’s development in the last 30 years as well as opportunities and challenges faced by the Warsaw Stock Exchange looking forward. The debate focuses among others on long-term savings of Poles and the impact of the pension system reform on the Polish stock exchange. The panel participants also discuss the perception of the Polish capital market from the perspective of issuers, investors, and brokers. Leading figures of the capital market participating in these day-long celebrations recall milestones in the 30-year-long history of the biggest exchange in Central and Eastern Europe.
The day-long presentations and discussions and today’s trading session will close with first GPW President Wiesław Rozłucki and present GPW President Marek Dietl ringing the bell.
The official celebrations of GPW’s 30th anniversary will span a full year under the honorary patronage of President of Poland Andrzej Duda.
For details of GPW’s 30th anniversary celebrations, visit the dedicated website at https://30latgpw.pl/.
***
History of the WSE
On 12 April 1991, the then Ministers of Ownership Transformation and Finance signed the Deed of Incorporation of the joint stock company "Giełda Papierów Wartościowych w Warszawie S.A." Four days later, on the day of the WSE's inaugural session, shares of five companies were traded and the turnover amounted to PLN 1990. Since 2018, the WSE has been classified as one of the 25 developed markets by the FTSE Russell agency. The history of the capital market on Polish soil dates back to the early 19th century. The first in Poland and one of the few in Europe, the Merchant Exchange, was established in Warsaw on 2 May 1817, soon became the largest market in Tsarist Russia, responsible for 5-6% of global securities trading. A thriving stock exchange, accounting for 90% of the domestic turnover, also operated in Warsaw in the interwar period. After the period of the People's Republic of Poland and the planned economy, it was not until 1989, with the political and economic transformation, that the Polish capital market was able to develop again.
Stock exchange today
The average session trading volume on the WSE is now around PLN 1.2 billion. The Main Market lists 434 companies (383 domestic and 51 foreign) and the NewConnect market lists 376 companies (372 domestic and 4 foreign). Last year, the WSE Group generated record sales of PLN 403.8 million and one of the highest ever net profits of over PLN 151 million. According to the Federation of European Securities Exchanges, in 2020 the WSE ranked first in Europe in terms of percentage increase in equity turnover and third in terms of the value of initial offerings. At the end of 2020, the WSE was also the second market in Europe in terms of liquidity and achieved the status of world leader in terms of the number of listed companies in the gamedev sector.
WSE position in the region
The WSE is the leader among stock exchanges in Central and Eastern Europe by the number of listed companies and the total capitalisation of domestic companies. The WSE's share in trading on stock exchanges in the region is 81%. The WSE leads the initiative of the Three Seas Stock Exchanges and aspires to the role of a regional hub for young technological companies with huge potential, the so-called unicorns. Negotiations are currently underway for the WSE to acquire a majority stake in the Armenian Exchange.
***
The Warsaw Stock Exchange Group (GPW Group) operates trading platforms for shares, Treasury and corporate bonds, derivatives, electricity and gas, and provides indices and benchmarks including WIBOR and WIBID. The index agent FTSE Russell classifies the Polish capital market as a Developed Market since 2018. The markets operated by the GPW Group are the biggest in Central and