IPO of Poland's third portal valued at $12 million

Interia, eastern Europe's first bourse-bound Internet portal, said it expects to set the price for its upcoming IPO at zl.30 per share, valuing the stake offered at $12 million. Set at an initial price of zl.21 each ealier in the week, an Interia executive now says the company's per-share price may be closer to zl.30 following a recent surge in new economy stocks on the American high-tech heavy Nasdaq exchange. Interia chief Tomasz Jazdzynski said he is skeptical about foreign interest in the offering. Still, Interia wants to issue 1.64 million new shares, totalling 25% of its enlarged capital. As Poland's third busiest portal, Interia leads a list of several fresh Internet companies in eastern Europe wishing to tap the equities markets soon. Interia, which currently has 4.9 million shares outstanding, will hold a subscription for up to 992,000 shares in the open tranche between Jan. 24 and 29, while book building will take place between Jan. 15 and 18. It will set the final IPO price on Jan. 20. Rights to Interia shares are due to begin trade on the Warsaw Stock Exchange on Feb. 2, with the debut of common shares several days later. (Reuters)D.S.