DGAP-News: MWB announces the cornerstones of its strategic readjustment
2001-11-08 08:00
More emphasis is to be placed on electronic trading in the future
Gräfelfing/Munich, November 8, 2001. - The Munich-based securities house MWB has begun implementing its concept for a strategic readjustment of the company. The planned activities involve restructuring the existing Foreign Stocks Business, Asset Management and IPO Consulting and adding the new business fields Market Making in Small and Mid Caps and Capital Market Advisory Services.
The company will begin with the designated sponsoring of 150 of Europe"s and America"s most liquid stocks in mid-December. MWB AG aims to achieve to become a market expert for European stocks within the framework of Deutsche Börse AG"s Global Markets Concept. It will also make use of its market making know-how in the field of German small and mid caps. The two divisions of MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank will be systematically expanded and, to some degree, reoriented. The focus in Asset Management will be on developing a nation-wide sales network with the goal of significantly increasing the volume under management. IPO Consulting will be developed into a consultancy for small- and mid-caps.
The strict cost controls put in place this year have already shown first results and will be continued by a change in settlement banks on December 1, 2001, and restricted staff reductions made necessary by the ongoing decrease in turnover in MWB"s core business.
The strategic readjustment described above is designed to give the company more stability in the long term and to lead it back to a positive cash-flow position.
By adding designated sponsoring activities in US and European stocks, and with its application as a XETRA market expert, MWB AG is adapting to the structural changes in the stock exchanges and the increasing importance of electronic trading that this entails - also for foreign stocks in Germany.
Aside from the still poor stock market environment in general, German small and mid-cap companies are showing themselves to be highly dissatisfied with the development of their stock prices. In many cases this can be attributed to the fact that institutional investors are neglecting them due to their low market liquidity. MWB AG, itself a company in this segment, sees potential in this situation as well as the challenge of gradually expanding the field of market making activities, which has to date been largely ignored in Germany.
In addition to this readjustment in the core business, the two divisions of MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank, Asset Management and IPO Consulting, will be restructured and, to some degree, repositioned in terms of content. MWB aims to counteract the stagnating volume growth of assets under management by entering into sales agreements and business collaborations with regional asset managers. The first project here will be a cooperation with an asset management company in the Baden region. The decisions from Basle II and the enduring debate about the discontinuation of public guarantors in the savings and cooperative bank organisation will continue to intensify the problems involved with financing small- and mid-caps in the medium term. MWB recognises an increasing need for advisory services among these enterprises and will enter into this business field via the step-by-step build up of an information and financing network.
The strict cost controls begun by MWB will be continued in the fourth quarter. By bundling the settlement of securities transactions in a single institute as of December 1, 2001, considerable savings will be generated, especially next year. Due to the continuing decrease in turnover in its core business, MWB finds itself forced to strike eight jobs at the end of the year.
MWB AG (www.mwb.de) has been listed in the SMAX since April 1999. It is a leading specialist and market maker for foreign securities in Germany. MWB has seats on the Munich, Berlin, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Stuttgart stock exchanges. It is also active in the IPO Business and Asset Management with its wholly owned subsidiary MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank.
Gräfelfing/Munich, November 8, 2001. - The Munich-based securities house MWB has begun implementing its concept for a strategic readjustment of the company. The planned activities involve restructuring the existing Foreign Stocks Business, Asset Management and IPO Consulting and adding the new business fields Market Making in Small and Mid Caps and Capital Market Advisory Services.
The company will begin with the designated sponsoring of 150 of Europe"s and America"s most liquid stocks in mid-December. MWB AG aims to achieve to become a market expert for European stocks within the framework of Deutsche Börse AG"s Global Markets Concept. It will also make use of its market making know-how in the field of German small and mid caps. The two divisions of MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank will be systematically expanded and, to some degree, reoriented. The focus in Asset Management will be on developing a nation-wide sales network with the goal of significantly increasing the volume under management. IPO Consulting will be developed into a consultancy for small- and mid-caps.
The strict cost controls put in place this year have already shown first results and will be continued by a change in settlement banks on December 1, 2001, and restricted staff reductions made necessary by the ongoing decrease in turnover in MWB"s core business.
The strategic readjustment described above is designed to give the company more stability in the long term and to lead it back to a positive cash-flow position.
By adding designated sponsoring activities in US and European stocks, and with its application as a XETRA market expert, MWB AG is adapting to the structural changes in the stock exchanges and the increasing importance of electronic trading that this entails - also for foreign stocks in Germany.
Aside from the still poor stock market environment in general, German small and mid-cap companies are showing themselves to be highly dissatisfied with the development of their stock prices. In many cases this can be attributed to the fact that institutional investors are neglecting them due to their low market liquidity. MWB AG, itself a company in this segment, sees potential in this situation as well as the challenge of gradually expanding the field of market making activities, which has to date been largely ignored in Germany.
In addition to this readjustment in the core business, the two divisions of MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank, Asset Management and IPO Consulting, will be restructured and, to some degree, repositioned in terms of content. MWB aims to counteract the stagnating volume growth of assets under management by entering into sales agreements and business collaborations with regional asset managers. The first project here will be a cooperation with an asset management company in the Baden region. The decisions from Basle II and the enduring debate about the discontinuation of public guarantors in the savings and cooperative bank organisation will continue to intensify the problems involved with financing small- and mid-caps in the medium term. MWB recognises an increasing need for advisory services among these enterprises and will enter into this business field via the step-by-step build up of an information and financing network.
The strict cost controls begun by MWB will be continued in the fourth quarter. By bundling the settlement of securities transactions in a single institute as of December 1, 2001, considerable savings will be generated, especially next year. Due to the continuing decrease in turnover in its core business, MWB finds itself forced to strike eight jobs at the end of the year.
MWB AG (www.mwb.de) has been listed in the SMAX since April 1999. It is a leading specialist and market maker for foreign securities in Germany. MWB has seats on the Munich, Berlin, Frankfurt, Düsseldorf and Stuttgart stock exchanges. It is also active in the IPO Business and Asset Management with its wholly owned subsidiary MWB Wertpapierhandelsbank.