EAST CAPITAL OPENS ITS PARIS OFFICE

East Capital has announced the opening of it Paris office. It will be run by Jean-Marie Laporte, former Nordic Director at Calyon. A real strategic move, for East Capital the opening of the Paris offices represents the first phase in its international diversification, with Norway and Russia set to follow.

As a focal point for the southern European market, the Paris office will give the company access to Spain and Italy, and also to Belgium and Switzerland. The commercial strategy in France will be aimed at obtaining a client base of private individuals, both directly and via partnerships with banks and also via brokers’ sites.

Once the company receives authorisation for the market, which should occur in the next few weeks, East Capital will offer four equity funds specialising in Russia (the East Capital Russian Fund), the Baltic region (the East Capital Baltic Fund), Eastern Europe (the East Capital Eastern European Fund) and the Southeastern Europe (the East Capital Balkan Fund).

Karine Hirn, Partner and Head of Sales and Marketing, explains that "due to the size of its mutual funds market, France is an extremely interesting market for East Capital in a commercial sense. We want to be seen as the asset manager of choice when it comes to Eastern Europe, offering accessible and transparent products. "

Jean-Marie Laporte

Jean-Marie Laporte joined East Capital in the spring of 2005, in order to make preparations for the opening of the Paris office. Former Nordic Director at Calyon, the French bank with the largest presence on the Nordic markets, Jean-Marie was a member of the Investment Committee of the East Capital Amber Fund, an investment fund specialising in non-listed Eastern European companies.

He formed and ran the international equity issues department at Banque Indosuez in Paris – a leader in privatisations in France and abroad, and was a senior banker for corporate clients before leaving for Stockholm in 1999.

Jean-Marie Laporte is educated as an economist. He was a professor of Economic Sciences at the University of Montpellier, and then senior economist at BNP before embarking on his career as a financier.

East Capital facts

East Capital is a leading, independent asset manager specialising in Eastern European financial markets. The company actively manages over 1.5 bn Euros, basing its investment strategy on thorough knowledge of the markets, fundamental analysis and frequent company visits by fund managers and analysts.

Further information can be obtained from:

Karine Hirn, East Capital on: +46 (0)8 505 88 526

karine.hirn@eastcapital.com