WASHINGTON, D.C., April 5, 1995 -- The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approved an equity investment of US$1.5 million for a 15 percent shareholding in the Russia Registry Company, the first joint venture share registry company in Russia. The Company will provide independent share registration and transfer services that meet international standards. Russia's nascent capital markets are facing an increasing demand for more reliable and transparent share registration services. This demand comes from the 35-40 million shareholders and the over 14,000 large privatized companies which were created by the Russian mass privatization program. In well functioning markets, share registries are maintained by trust banks totally independent from the companies for which they maintain registries. Their fiduciary obligation is to preserve the integrity of the share registry and to expeditiously record changes in share ownership on receipt of properly executed transfer instructions. The Russia Registry Company wi
ll provide Russian companies with registry services which meet this standard. "Because of the vital importance of registry services, the Russian Government asked IFC in October 1994, to take the lead in creating and promoting an independent, reliable registry service. Five months later, IFC's efforts have resulted in this project being structured," said Wilfried Kaffenberger, Vice President, IFC. With a capital base of US$10 million, the Company will be owned 40 percent by Russian institutions including NIKoil and United Export Import Bank. The Bank of New York will be a 30 percent shareholder and will provide management and technical support to the Company. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has also been invited to participate in the share capital of the Company. The Company will be headquartered in Moscow and is expected to establish branches in 15-20 key locations nationwide. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest multilateral source of equity and loan financing for privat
e sector projects in developing and emerging economies.
