KBC set to raise $1.2bn from stake sale Belgium's KBC is poised to raise as much as $1.2bn from investors through a sale of its stake in Polish lender Zachodni WBK in the latest show of investor appetite for Polish banking assets. The deal will push the amount of money raised through Poland's equity capital markets this year to more than $3bn, surpassing the total raised in 2012, according to data from Dealogic. KBC has sold 15.3m shares, or a 16.2 per cent stake, in the Polish bank for between 240 zlotys and 255 zlotys per share. The Belgium lender recently announced plans to dispose of assets as it begins to repay cheap loans from the European Central Bank, as well as aid received from the Belgian government in 2009. Santander, Zachodni's biggest shareholder, could exercise its right to sell an additional 4.7m of shares, bringing the total transaction value to as much as $1.6bn. The book closed on Thursday evening and the total amount raised will be confirmed on Friday. Three people familiar with the deal said on Thursday that the book was already covered and demand was oversubscribed. Poland's equity capital markets have had a bumper start to the year, with a handful of large capital markets deals hitting Warsaw's exchange in January alone. Excluding Thursday's share sale by KBC, a total of $3bn has been raised in Poland over the first three months of 2013 through five deals. This compares with $3.3bn over 2012 via 58 deals, according to Dealogic. In January, UniCredit placed 9.1 per cent of its shares in Polish subsidiary Pekao for $1.2bn, and PKO BP placed $1.7bn of its shares. Santander has been active in Poland over the past two years as part of its larger strategy to expand in emerging markets and lessen its dependence on the local Spanish banking market. The Spanish bank bought a 70 per cent stake in Zachodni from Allied Irish Banks in 2011, and last year took control of Kredyt Bank from KBC through a €700m share exchange. A total of 14 banks acted as bookrunners, co-ordinators and managers for the Zachodni transaction in what one person familiar with the deal said was a sign of how important Poland is for capital markets activity. However, the fees that banks receive on deals in Poland have become a source of frustration for bankers because they are lower than in other developed European markets. Shares in Zachodni closed down 0.2 per cent at 255 zlotys on Thursday.