Kievmedpreparat & Halychpharm Join Forces

The two companies have created a new entity to cooperate on marketing and research and development. The new corporation has announced plans to increase share on the market by 0.5% annually. Currently the corporation ranks 5 among pharma companies in Ukraine, including #2 among domestic producers. The two companies posted total sales of USD41 mn in 2004. Concorde Capital: Both companies are related to ?Finance and Credit? group, which is known for its focus on equity market strategies. They attracted financing for their other holding, AvtoKrAZ (KRAZ: BUY), through a private placement of a minority stake earlier this year. We believe Poltavsky GOK (PGOK: BUY), also controlled by the group, is a potential IPO candidate. Creating a holding out of the two separate pharmaceutical companies may also be a step toward making an attractive investment object.