John Thain, chief executive of the NYSE, has warned fellow exchanges against accepting international listings from countries from the former Soviet Union because of the lack of adherence to corporate governance rules.
Although he did not make reference to an exchange in particular, the comments will be seen as a direct hit on the LSE, which has been a haven for Russian listings, the largest to date being that of Rosneft, the oil company that co-listed in London last summer to much controversy.
The comments come just three months after Mr Thain hit out at the LSE's junior Aim market, calling into question the quality of the companies that list on it.
He made his latest comments in Paris ahead of the merger of the NYSE and Euronext this morning.
Mr Thain told Financial News magazine: "I am very concerned about the quality of corporate governance, the transparency of company financials and the protection of minority shareholders. A number of Russian companies raise serious questions around these issues."Â There are 43 Russian companies listed on the LSE's main market and Aim.
His comments will be seen as unhelpful by the LSE's robust chief executive, Clara Furse, who has done much to promote the LSE and Aim across certain pockets of the globe, in particular Russia. Source: Mosnews
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