(Reuters) -French telecom operator Orange intends to delist its shares from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), it said on Wednesday, citing the financial and administrative requirements of the secondary listing.
"The decision to voluntarily delist from the NYSE and to deregister from the SEC was made after careful consideration by the board of directors, taking into account the significant financial and administrative requirements of maintaining the NYSE listing and SEC registration," the group said in a press release.
This decision "aims primarily to simplify our administrative workload, rather than to achieve significant cost reductions", an Orange spokesperson told Reuters.
Savings will remain "modest" compared to the group's expenses, he said, adding that Orange expects a simplification of its reporting requirements, thanks to the unified and standardised Euronext system.
It plans to file an application with the Securities and Exchange Commission in the fourth quarter of this year to start the delisting process. The delisting will be effective 10 days after that filing, it said.
The exit from the NYSE is expected to have no impact on Orange's U.S. clients or partners or its presence in the U.S. market, the French group said.
Orange said it would also proceed to the deregistration of two sets of debt securities, previously issued on the NYSE.