Stock exhange Bursa Malaysia today announced the appointment of financial advisors for its initial public offer (IPO), and said it aimed to list the bourse by the first quarter of 2005.

In a statement it named Commerce International Merchant Bankers Bhd. as the principal listing adviser and joint bookrunner, while UBS Investment Bank would be the international financial adviser and joint bookrunner.

They will assist Bursa to review its business model by benchmarking against its listed peers, and also arrange the placement of shares to both domestic and institutional investors, it said.

"We target to be ready to list in the first quarter of next year, of course subject to prevailing market conditions and obtaining the requisite regulatory approvals," said Bursa's chief executive Yusli Mohamed Yusoff.

The stock exchange was demutualised early this year as part of efforts to improve efficiency, accountability and transparency as well as enhancing the ability to raise capital to fund investments.