Media: Bucharest Stock Exchange GM dismissed after six months

The general manager of the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB) Victor Cionga was dismissed from his position after only six months at the helm of the BVB, according to Mediafax, quoting sources on the capital market. Cionga will continue to lead the BVB for two months, while a replacement is found.

The BVB administrators reviewed the first six months of activity under his leadership and voted for his dismissal. According to Mediafax, the dismissal was caused by Cionga's proposal to restructure the group of companies BVB, which was not well received by the board. One of Cionga's objectives upon taking over the helm of the BVB was to internally restructure the group, which also includes the central Depositary, the Bucharest Compensation House, the Corporate Governance Institute and the Fund to Compensate Investors. Changes in fees were also at the core of the disagreement between Cionga and the board, according to market sources. The BVB board comprises nine members, elected last year, six of whom supported economist Lucian Anghel, who is the president of the board. The six members are, according to Mediafax: Valerian Ionescu (BCR), Adrian Lupşan (Intercapital Invest), Narcisa Oprea (lawyer, Schoenherr & Asociaţii), Schroll Matjaz (Franklin Templeton) and Robert Cosmin Pană (Swiss Capital). The other three board members are former BVB president Stere Farmache, the president of the Brokers' Association Dan Paul and Octavian Molnar (IFB Finwest). BVB's largest shareholders are several foreign investment funds, among which are funds managed by Franklin Templeton, which own 5 percent of BVB's shares per fund. Romanian investment funds SIF Moldova (SIF2), SIF Transilvania (SIF3) and SIF Oltenia (SIF5) each own 5 percent, while SIF Muntenia (SIF4) owns 3.64 percent. Cionga, who has run his own consultancy firm since 20007, when he withdrew from Raiffeisen Capital Investment, in 2011 was involved in the deal for the secondary listing of Petrom on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, on behalf of Renaissance Capital, which won the tender to mediate the deal. The secondary listing was however unsuccessful. editor@romania-insider.com