Wirtualna Polska Holding names former analyst as IR lead

Warsaw-headquartered Wirtualna Polska Holding, a Polish online media and e-commerce group, has named Małgorzata Żelazko as director of investor relations and financial analysis.

Żelazko joins the company after almost eight years at PKO BP bank where she served as an equity analyst covering the TMT sector. During her time on the sell side, Żelazko was recognized for her efforts: in both 2020 and 2021, she was voted as the number one analyst in the TMT sector by Polish institutional investors in a league table compiled by business daily Parkiet.

In its most recent rankings, the paper said Żelazko had once again ‘indisputably won in the telecommunications and media category’.

IR Magazine spoke to Żelazko ahead of her move to Wirtualna Polska Holding, as she discussed a new IR society that was launched virtually in Warsaw last week. The Wrocław University of Economics graduate commented that the new society offers an opportunity to bring together a community that perhaps doesn’t have the opportunity to share experiences so often.

‘[IR] is a new role for me obviously, but I have worked with investor relations a lot in the past,’ Żelazko says. So what has her experience been – from the sell side – of the Polish IR community?

‘Investor relations in the TMT sector is usually great, but I think that’s not necessarily the rule,’ she says, adding some thoughts on what she feels makes for good IR.

Firstly, she notes how essential it is to be able to contact IR ‘almost immediately’ when necessary, and secondly, how bringing out more than just the CEO and CFO can present a great opportunity.

‘For me it’s always been very interesting to have the opportunity to speak to other members of management, like the chief strategy officer, or to talk to a tech person or someone like that,’ says Żelazko.