Bratislava exchange says no talks with Warsaw bourse

BRATISLAVA (Reuters) - The Bratislava Stock Exchange (BSE) is not in talks about a takeover by the Warsaw bourse, its top shareholder said on Wednesday, denying a Polish media report.

"MH Manazment... and the BSE board do not have any knowledge on talks on the alleged acquisition, nor have we ever participated in such talks," the bourse's top shareholder said in an email.

Polish newspaper Daily Rzeczpospolita reported on Tuesday, citing an unnamed source, that the Polish government was in "advanced" talks with its Slovak counterpart to acquire the Bratislava exchange.

State-run MH Manazment controls Slovakia's 76% stake in the exchange.

Slovakia's finance and economy ministries also said they were not aware of talks.

Trading volume on the bourse in 2018 plunged to 479.9 million euros (($528.95 million) from 7.2 billion euros a year earlier after the state moved government bond trading to a new system.

It employs 23 workers and posted revenue of 1.3 million euros ($1.44 million) last year.

The Warsaw Stock Exchange failed to acquire the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange last year following a diplomatic row over Poland's new law on the Holocaust.

(Reporting by Tatiana Jancarikova; editing by Jason Hovet and Chizu Nomiyama)