The incognito investor

When investors such as Ryszard Krauze or Ryszard Czarnecki make a move the market tends to follow. Krauze is the founder of Prokom group and a major shareholder in Bioton, and Czarnecki owns Getin bank and is also one of the most successful investors active on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

Elżbieta Sjoeblom is another famous, if much more enigmatic name among investors. Until recently, her  moves on the WSE were scrupulously shadowed, even more so that few could claim to have laid eyes on Sjoeblom and many doubted if she really existed.

Two weeks ago, the myth of the Loch Ness monster of the Polish bourse was laid to rest, when she reared her head to suddenly call a meeting with the employees of clothing company Próchnik, in which she is the largest investor. She confirmed that her interest in the company is long term and expressed the hope that the firm will soon regain a leading market position.

Sjoeblom, whose assets are estimated at over zł.50 million, also revealed that the "operational head" of her stock-market investments is her son and proxy Maciej Niebrzydowski - who was previously sentenced for fraud, which led to the bankruptcy of Karginta, an ice-cream company. Typically the companies Niebrzydowski chooses to invest in are in financial difficulties and are among the favorites for speculative investors, e.g. Swarzędz, Stalexport and Próchnik.

Sjoeblom is also regarded as a speculative investor, and in one day she made as many as 200 transactions, which means she had to make a deal on average every 90 seconds.

Niebrzydowski's past caught up with him last week. When news of his history leaked out, the price of stocks held by Sjoeblom decreased by zł.6.65 million in just two days.

Katarzyna Dębek