Foreign investors lift BOC stake to 16%

Foreign institutional investors were holding 16% of the share capital of Bank of Cyprus Group Public Co. Ltd. by the end of 2005 compared to just 3% end of 2004, said Yiannis Kypri, Group Chief General Manager.

Speaking after the BOC announced its new financial targets, Kypri said Greek institutional investors on the other hand held only 0.3% of the capital of BOC, something that may soon change when BOC shares trading on the Athens Stock Exchange join the ATHEX FTSE 40 end of April and becomes a candidate to join the FTSE 20 in Greece.

The inclusion of BOC in the ASE/FTSE 40 is seen as a positive development that should attract Greek institutionals who currently hold 23% of the capital of Eurobank and 41% of National Bank of Greece.

Kypri, who is currently in Germany on another investment road show, is credited for managing to attract foreign institutional investors, whose buying has been instrumental in helping drive the share price of BOC higher.

During 2005, the share price of BOC increased by 70%, while in January 2006, the share price was up 28% compared to its start price.

Who’s Who

Meanwhile a Financial Mirror review of the bank’s share register found that Julius Bear International Equity has moved into the number one position as the largest investor in BOC shares through Greece with a holding of 8.04 mln shares.

The Financial Mirror survey found that Investimex Holdings is the second largest BOC shareholder in Greece with 5.48 mln shares, followed by Blakeney 3.3 mln, Tassin Holdings 3.2 mln, Universal Life 2.89 mln, T. Rowe Price 2.61 mln, Privilege Portfolio 2.52 mln, Pictet & Co. 2.51 mln, Escala 2.16 mln, Blakeney Investors 2.14 mln, UBS London Int’l. Prime Brokers 2.07 mln, Banca Commercial Italiana – Milan 1.84 mln, Natexis Banque Populaire 1.81 mln, UBS AG London 1.73 mln, Blakeney General Partners 1.62 mln, UBS AG 1.59 mln, Morgan Stanley 1.48 mln, Chartered Bank of Cyprus Staff Provident Fund 1.42 mln and Banque Generale Du Luxembourg with 1.35 mln shares in 20th place.