OREANDA-NEWS. Nasdaq (NASDAQ:NDAQ) announces that LHV Pank becomes the first pan-Baltic Certified Adviser on First North, which means that LHV Pank can advise companies pursuing admission of their financial instruments to First North in all three Baltic countries.

First North Certified Advisers guide companies through the application process to First North at Nasdaq Baltic and ensure that the companies fulfill all the requirements of First North. The status of a Certified Adviser is granted to sufficiently experienced legal/business consultancy or financial intermediation companies.

“It is great to see LHV Pank taking another step in providing their experience and knowledge to the small and medium sized enterprises in the Baltics who are aiming to raise funds via the First North market,” said Rauno Klettenberg, the Head of Nasdaq Tallinn.

Ivars Bergmanis, the Head of Institutional Markets at LHV Pank said that he believed the qualities offered by First North as an alternative marketplace for growing companies will increasingly be an interesting option for funding considerations. “Firstly, loan-based capital funding has natural limits. Secondly, combining this with improving corporate governance appreciation and equity culture of enterprises across the region we believe the time is now to offer such a facility.”

Through Nasdaq Baltic First North, small, medium and growth companies can access the capital markets to boost their growth potential. The regulatory approach is adjusted to the needs of companies so they can enter the market and concentrate on building their business with an easier transition to becoming a publicly traded company. With the introduction of the Baltic Certified Adviser status, small, medium and growth companies searching for First North Certified Adviser’s services will get a greater choice.

About Nasdaq Baltic First North
First North is regulated as a multilateral trading facility, operated by the different exchanges at Nasdaq. It does not have the legal status as a regulated market in EU. Companies at First North are subject to the rules of First North and not the legal requirements for admission to trading on a regulated market. The risk in such an investment may be higher than on the regulated market.

About Nasdaq
Nasdaq (Nasdaq:NDAQ) is a leading provider of trading, exchange technology, information and public company services across six continents. Through its diverse portfolio of solutions, Nasdaq enables customers to plan, optimize and execute their business vision with confidence, using proven technologies that provide transparency and insight for navigating today's global capital markets. As the creator of the world's first electronic stock market, its technology powers more than 70 marketplaces in 50 countries, and 1 in 10 of the world's securities transactions. Nasdaq is home to more than 3,500 listed companies with a market value of over \$8.8 trillion and more than 10,000 corporate clients.

Nasdaq Copenhagen, Nasdaq Helsinki, Nasdaq Iceland, Nasdaq Riga, Nasdaq Stockholm, Nasdaq Tallinn, Nasdaq Vilnius, Nasdaq Clearing and Nasdaq Broker Services are respectively brand names for the regulated markets of Nasdaq OMX Copenhagen A/S, Nasdaq OMX Helsinki Ltd., Nasdaq OMX Iceland hf., Nasdaq OMX Riga, AS, Nasdaq OMX Stockholm AB, Nasdaq OMX Tallinn AS, AB Nasdaq OMX Vilnius, Nasdaq OMX Clearing AB, Nasdaq OMX Broker Services AB. Nasdaq Nordic represents the common offering by Nasdaq Copenhagen, Nasdaq Helsinki, Nasdaq Iceland and Nasdaq Stockholm. Nasdaq Baltic represents the common offering by Nasdaq Tallinn, Nasdaq Riga and Nasdaq Vilnius.