Hanover - Kaspersky Lab, the Russian company that has built
an international reputation in computer security software, is
considering listing on a Western stock exchange, company head Natalja
Kaspersky said Sunday.
Speaking to Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa at the Cebit Fair in the
German city Hanover, Kaspersky said there were no definite plans for
an initial public offering (IPO) and added the time was inopportune
at the moment.
She referred to the Russian presidential elections in 2008 as one
reason. Another was lack of clarity for the virus protection sector
in the light of Microsoft's decision to enter the market and the
launch at the beginning of this year of the Windows Vista operating
system.
The lack of a hi-tech market in Russia meant that Western stock
exchanges would be considered for the IPO, Kaspersky said.
'Ours would not really fit among the oil and gas shares,' she
said.
Kaspersky added the company was not in urgent need of the funding
an IPO would bring. 'We have sufficient money,' she said.
The firm does not reveal its current ownership structure, saying
only that it is a closed company with a limited number of
shareholders.
At Cebit, the world's largest fair of its kind, Kaspersky has
warned that the battle against computer viruses might be unwinnable.
'If the growth in malware continues at the current pace, makers of
anti-virus software may not be able to withstand the onslaught,'
company founder Eugene Kaspersky said.
© 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur 
USA
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