OJSC "Astana-finance" (Kazakhstan) - brief description in connection with primary floatation of securities

/IRBIS, May 18, 00/ - Kazakhstan Stock Exchange (KASE) informs that primary auction on offering of common inscribed shares of OJSC "Astana-finance" (official list of securities, category "B", KZ1C7671418, trade code in main trade regime - ASFI) will be conducted between May 23 and 26. In this connection, IRBIS lists brief description of the company. OJSC "Astana-finance" started as CJSC "Fond-Akmola" in April of 1998, which was established by the decision of an Administrative council of Akmola special economic zone (SEZ, presently - special economic zone of Astana) on the base of State institution "Fond ekonomicheskogo i sotsialnogo razvitya Akmolinskoi spetsialnoi ekonomicheskoi zony" (Economic and social development fund of Akmola special economic zone). By the decision of the Administrative council of SEZ, which is the only founder and shareholder of CJSC "Fond Akmola", it was reregistered as OJSC "Astana-finance" on August 14, 1999. As of December 2, 1999 the company had 73 employees. The company is an organization that conducts some banking operations in accordance with the license #25 of the National Bank of Kazakhstan to conduct banking operations in tenge and foreign currency, dated October 1, 1998: - lending operations: granting loans; - other operations, specified by the banking legislature: leasing a property with keeping the ownership rights of the lessor on that property for a whole time of the contract (the lease); factoring operations - acquiring the rights for the payment from the buyer of the goods (work, services) by accepting the risk of non-payment. Apart from the license of the National Bank of Kazakhstan, OJSC "Astana- finance" has the State license #0000058 of the Agency for real estate and legal entity registration of the Justice Ministry of Kazakhstan to conduct real estate appraisal activities, dated February 17, 1999. As a non-banking financial establishment, according to the Charter and possessed licenses, the company engages in following activities: - a financial operator of the Administrative council of SEZ of Astana in accordance with the agent agreement of February 6, 98; - an agent on servicing private external borrowing to reconstruct International airport "Astana"; - finances projects according to ADB credit line for import substitute production development and industry of Astana development programs, for small and medium sized business support program; - offers services to the Administrative council of SEZ of Astana to issue municipal bonds and implementation of mortgage credit programs for housing development; - an agent of the government of Kazakhstan, the Ministry of finance of Kazakhstan and Administrative council of SEZ of Astana on servicing loans and financing economic and social development programs of SEZ of Astana and entrepreneurship support programs. As a non-banking financial establishment, OJSC "Astana-finance" has no correspondent relationships with the banks. Accounts settlement system of the company is based on the existence of accounts in the banks of the second tier. Settlement and currency accounts are opened in OJSC "Tsesnabank", OJSC "KAZKOMMERTSBANK", OJSC "Irtyshbusinessbank", only settlement accounts in OJSC "Halyk Bank of Kazakhstan" and OJSC "Bank TuranAlem". Payments are made by a remote access to "Bank-Client" payment system via a modem connection. The main task of the company, as a financial operator of the Administrative council of SEZ of Astana, is rational and effective use of funds allocated for economic and social programs, projects and activities to stimulate highly effective, profitable businesses, optimization of city's economic structure, support and development of the entrepreneurship, creation of modern production and social infrastructure to provide new manufacturing facilities and work places in the new capital of Kazakhstan - Astana. The company participates in the projects within a general development program of Astana, which provides for the construction of the capital using state investments, foreign borrowings, direct investments of domestic and foreign investors. OJSC "Astana-finance" has received auditing report of "Arthur Andersen" on its financial statements of 1998. Following are the results of economic activity of OJSC "Astana-Finance" in 1999 according to the company's data (in th. KZT): As of As of Change, Ratio January 1 '99 January 1 '00 % ------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- -------- Authorized capital (issued) 100,000 3,100,000 +3,000.0 Authorized capital (paid) 100,000 102,436 +2.4 Shareholders' equity 234,618 2,298,229 +879.6 Total assets 7,965,635 12,796,996 +60.7 Lending portfolio 4,605,367 9,547,455 +107.3 Doubtful debt provisions 131,732 541,862 +311.3 Borrowed funds 5,821,132 8,750,386 +50.3 Income from operating activities 507,696 6,266,610 +1,134.3 General expenses 507,696 4,747,298 +835.1 Net income 0 1,519,312 - ------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- -------- Calculated based on issuer's data: ------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- -------- Return on equity (ROE), % 0.00 66.11 - Return on assets (ROA), % 0.00 11.87 - Earnings per share (EPS), KZT 0.00 14,831.82 - Book value of a share, KZT 2,346.18 22,435.76 +856.3 ------------------------------------- ------------- ------------- -------- Following indicators rose in 1999 as compared to 1998: - shareholders' equity by KZT2.06 bln, or 9.8 times (increase in undistributed income - by KZT1.52 bln, reserve capital - by KZT541.86 mln, paid authorized capital - by KZT2.44 mln); - assets by KZT4.83 bln; - lending portfolio by KZT4.94 bln; - volume of borrowed funds by KZT2.93 bln; - Income from operating activities by KZT5.76 bln; - general expenses by KZT4.24 bln. As a result, net income of OJSC "Astana-finance" in 1999 equaled KZT1.52 bln. Within two issues the company has issued 3,100,000 common inscribed shares (KZ1C7671418) for KZT3,100,000,000, including: first issue (registration date - February 8, 99) - 100,000 shares, second issue (registration date - December 14, 99) - 3,000,000 shares. Par value of a share - KZT1,000. As of November 10, 1999 Administrative council of SEZ of Astana was a single shareholder (founder) OJSC "Astana-finance", which also held 100% of the company shares.