How can we counter disinformation attacks on the capital market?

In 20 December, a debate organised by of the stock market and investor newspaper "Parkiet" took place, during which the invited experts – Beata Stelmach, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the Association of Stock Exchange Issuers and co-founder of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and Piotr Kuczynski, an analyst at DI Xelion, Sebastian Buczek, CEO of Quercus TFI, and Prof. Michał Romanowski, lawyer at the law firm Romanowski & Partners, discussed how to prepare for disinformation attacks and how to combat them once they occur.
The debate was moderated by Cezary Szymanek, editor-in-chief of "Parkiet".

The debate focused on the foundations of capital markets against the backdrop of geopolitical threats, triggered, among other things, by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Key conclusions include:

• Disinformation attacks are a problem not only for companies but also for the entire national market.
• There is a need for a swift response from institutions such as the Polish Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) and the Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW), as well as the implementation of clear crisis procedures.
• Strengthening cybersecurity and utilising advanced technologies, including artificial intelligence, to defend against disinformation.
• Promoting reliable channels of information about listed companies.
• Prioritising the security of the capital market in state policy, particularly in the context of the Polish Presidency of the EU.

Beata Stelmach emphasised that every organisation, and particularly a listed company, should have a crisis management procedure in place.
Piotr Kuczyński, meanwhile, suggested that an interesting solution in the context of disinformation attacks would be to introduce a single information channel for listed companies, which would serve as a guarantee of their credibility.
Sebestian Buczek noted that when dealing with extensive false information, it takes time to familiarise oneself with it, making it difficult to take swift action, although the market naturally expects feedback as quickly as possible.

Prof. Michał Romanowski, for his part, said that the disinformation attack on LPP was a landmark event not only in Poland but across the European Union, and that if market security is not on the Polish state’s list of priorities, disinformation attacks will discourage companies from entering the capital market, and companies already listed will consider leaving it.

Links to the debate: Rzeczpospolita [LINK] | Parkiet [LINK] | YouTube [LINK]