Many investors checking their portfolios for the polymetal share price are met with frozen charts, delisting notices, or a completely different name: Solidcore Resources plc. If you originally bought shares in Polymetal International plc on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) under the ticker POLY or on the Moscow Exchange (MOEX), the investment landscape has shifted fundamentally.
Today, Polymetal no longer exists as an active London-listed entity. The company has re-domiciled to Kazakhstan, sold its Russian assets, rebranded as Solidcore Resources, and now trades primarily on the Astana International Exchange (AIX) under the ticker symbol CORE (in USD) and CORE.K (in KZT). Its primary share price on the AIX currently hovers between $8.50 and $8.70 USD, representing a major recovery driven by record gold prices and operational stability.
In this comprehensive guide, we will unpack everything you need to know about the current polymetal share price, why the LSE and MOEX delistings happened, the financial state of the rebranded Solidcore Resources, and—critically—what current or stranded retail shareholders can do next.
The Evolution of Polymetal to Solidcore Resources
To understand the polymetal share price today, one must understand the complex corporate restructuring that took place between 2022 and 2024.
Founded in 1998 in Saint Petersburg by Alexander Nesis, Polymetal International grew to become one of the world's top gold and silver producers. By 2011, it had achieved a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange, eventually joining the prestigious FTSE 100 index. However, the geopolitical events of 2022 fractured the company's dual-jurisdiction model, as its extensive operations were split between Russia and Kazakhstan.
Faced with severe Western sanctions on Russian entities and the freezing of international depository chains (such as Euroclear and Russia's National Settlement Depository), Polymetal's management had to make a survival choice.
- August 2023 — LSE Delisting & Redomiciliation: The company successfully relocated its corporate registration from Jersey to the Astana International Financial Centre (AIFC) in Kazakhstan. Because of this move, it could no longer maintain a premium listing on the LSE. Trading on the LSE was suspended, and a full delisting took effect on August 29, 2023.
- March 2024 — Divestment of Russian Assets: In a decisive move to rid itself of sanctions risks, Polymetal sold its entire Russian business to a Siberian gold miner (Mangazeya Plus) in a transaction valued at approximately $3.7 billion. This left the company with zero Russian operations, transforming it into a pure-play Kazakh mining group.
- June 2024 — Rebranding to Solidcore Resources: To fully distance itself from its Russian past and signal a fresh start in Central Asia, the company officially changed its name to Solidcore Resources plc.
- October 2024 — MOEX Delisting: Because the Moscow Exchange was targeted by US sanctions (OFAC), Solidcore chose to delist its shares from MOEX, effective October 15, 2024, to eliminate ongoing compliance risks.
Consequently, any historical analysis of the "Polymetal share price" must transition to analyzing the Solidcore Resources share price (AIX: CORE).
Why Did Polymetal Delist from the LSE and MOEX?
The delisting of Polymetal from both London and Moscow represents one of the most striking examples of corporate migration forced by modern geopolitics.
The LSE Delisting (August 2023)
For over a decade, Polymetal was a darling of London's natural resources sector, providing UK retail and institutional investors with direct exposure to high-grade gold mines. However, when Russia-related sanctions were implemented in 2022, international clearinghouses like Euroclear and CREST stopped settling trades for shares linked to Russian companies.
Although Polymetal's parent company was registered in Jersey, its core operations were heavily concentrated in Russia. To restore shareholder rights, pay dividends, and raise capital, the board decided that moving the company's legal home to Kazakhstan—a neutral jurisdiction—was the only viable path. Because Jersey law and Kazakhstan's AIFC laws could not be seamlessly bridged while maintaining an LSE listing, the company was forced to cancel its LSE admission.
The MOEX Delisting (October 2024)
Even after the LSE delisting, Polymetal shares continued to trade on the Moscow Exchange under the ticker POLY. However, the United States Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed comprehensive sanctions on the Moscow Exchange itself.
Continuing a listing on MOEX posed severe compliance and secondary sanctions risks for the company, its new international backers, and its primary listing on the Astana International Exchange. Furthermore, since the company had already sold 100% of its Russian mines in March 2024, it had no remaining "Russian nexus." Keeping the MOEX listing made no strategic sense. On October 15, 2024, Solidcore officially terminated its MOEX listing, encouraging Russian shareholders to swap their shares for AIX-listed equities.
Current Solidcore Resources (Polymetal) Share Price & Financial Health
For investors tracking the current polymetal share price, the active ticker is now CORE on the Astana International Exchange (AIX).
AIX Share Price Performance
Trading on the AIX has become highly active. The Solidcore Resources (CORE) share price is trading around $8.54 to $8.70 USD per share. This represents a remarkable turnaround from the dark days of 2023, when LSE-listed shares collapsed to pennies amid panic and liquidity freezes.
This strong performance is supported by several factors:
- Record-Breaking Gold Prices: Global gold prices have surged to historic highs, greatly enhancing the margins of low-cost producers.
- Clean Corporate Structure: Solidcore is now a fully un-sanctioned entity, backed by respectable international institutional investors and a sovereign wealth connection.
- Strong Shareholder Base: In early 2024, the Omani government-owned consortium, Maaden International Investment SPC, acquired a 23.9% stake (which has since risen to 29.7%), providing solid financial backing and long-term stability.
Key Financial Highlights (FY 2025 Results)
Solidcore Resources released its audited financial results for the year ended December 31, 2025. The numbers paint a picture of a highly profitable, cash-generative mining powerhouse:
- Revenue: Reached $1.5 billion USD, a 13% increase year-on-year, despite lower sales volumes, thanks to surging gold prices.
- Adjusted EBITDA: Rose to $972 million USD, representing a massive 37% increase year-on-year.
- EBITDA Margin: Climbed to an impressive 65% (up from 54% in 2024).
- Underlying Net Earnings: Grew 40% to $701 million USD.
- Balance Sheet Strength: The company ended 2025 with a net cash position of $464 million USD and cash equivalents of $731 million, providing a massive war chest for future development.
For 2026, Solidcore has guided for a significant production increase to 540,000 gold equivalent ounces (GE Koz) as it actively sells down the concentrate stockpiles accumulated in 2025 due to temporary logistical bottlenecks.
What Happened to Stranded Retail Shareholders?
One of the largest content gaps in traditional financial reporting is what actually happened to the thousands of retail investors who bought Polymetal on the LSE or MOEX and found themselves holding "zombie" shares. If you are one of these shareholders, the situation has evolved through several critical corporate actions:
1. The Exchange Offers (2024–2025)
To assist shareholders affected by the sanctions-induced freezing of depository bridges (like the Euroclear-NSD link), Solidcore launched multiple tranches of a Share Exchange Offer. Eligible shareholders were invited to swap their blocked shares on a one-for-one basis for new, fully tradable shares issued on the Astana International Exchange (AIX). The final window for this exchange offer closed on October 31, 2025.
2. The Mandatory Euroclear Buyback (December 2025)
For shareholders who held their shares through Euroclear/CREST and did not participate in the voluntary exchange offers, the Board implemented a compulsory course of action.
On December 22, 2025, Solidcore announced the completion of a mandatory buyback of all remaining blocked shares held under Euroclear.
- The Price: The buyback was executed at a fixed price of $2.57 USD per share.
- The Result: A total of 123,408,853 shares were repurchased by the company and placed into treasury. The cash consideration was transferred to a secure bank account managed by a professional trustee for the benefit of Euroclear.
If your shares were held in a standard nominee account with a Western broker (such as Hargreaves Lansdown, Freetrade, Interactive Investor, etc.) and were subject to this Euroclear-level freeze, your broker should have received this cash settlement on your behalf, effectively closing out your position.
3. How to Trade Your Transferred AIX Shares
For those retail investors who successfully transferred their holdings to the AIX Registrar or the AIX Investor Portal prior to the deadlines, their shares are no longer frozen. However, Western brokers generally cannot execute trades directly on the Kazakh exchange.
To trade your shares today:
- You must open an account with an AIX-compatible broker. Popular options among retail investors include Freedom Broker (Tradernet), Wood & Co, or local Kazakh firms.
- Once your brokerage account is set up, you can request a transfer of your shares from the AIX CSD (Central Securities Depository) to your new broker's custody.
- Once credited, you can buy or sell the shares under the ticker CORE during AIX market hours.
Solidcore's Core Assets and Future Growth Prospects
Now that Solidcore is decoupled from Russia, its investment thesis rests entirely on its Kazakh assets and its ambitious downstream strategy.
1. Kyzyl Gold Mine (Abai Region)
Kyzyl is Solidcore’s crown jewel. It is a world-class, high-grade deposit characterized by double-refractory gold ore. Refractory ore means the gold is locked inside pyrite and arsenopyrite crystals (sulfidic refractory) and the active organic carbon absorbs the dissolved gold before it can be recovered (carbonaceous refractory). Solidcore is currently transitioning Kyzyl to underground mining works, which will secure high-grade feed for decades to come.
2. Varvara Hub (Kostanay Region)
The Varvara hub is a processing facility and open-pit gold mine. It acts as a processing center, utilizing flotation and carbon-in-pulp (CIP) technologies. Varvara processes both domestic ore and third-party feed, providing steady, low-risk production.
3. The Ertis POX Plant (The Ultimate Game Changer)
Because Kyzyl's ore is double-refractory, Solidcore has historically relied on shipping concentrate to the Amursk POX plant in Russia for processing. To eliminate this massive geopolitical vulnerability, Solidcore is constructing the Ertis Hydrometallurgical Plant (Ertis POX) in Pavlodar, Kazakhstan.
- The Project: Central Asia's first large-scale, state-of-the-art pressure oxidation (POX) plant. Pressure oxidation destroys both the sulfide matrix and deactivates the carbon, achieving over 90% gold recovery.
- Capital Expenditure: Estimated at $978 million USD, funded via operating cash flows and major international banks (including a $100 million credit facility from Germany's KfW IPEX-Bank and support from the EBRD).
- Capacity: Designed to process up to 300,000 tons of gold concentrate per year, producing up to 500,000 ounces of gold in dore alloy.
- Timeline: Full construction is underway, with commissioning scheduled for the first half of 2028. Once completed, it will allow Solidcore to keep 100% of its processing in-house within Kazakhstan.
4. Syrymbet Tin Project
Solidcore holds a 55% stake in the Syrymbet deposit, one of the world's largest undeveloped tin projects. This asset provides the company with potential multi-commodity exposure and long-term diversification.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the current ticker symbol for Polymetal?
The old ticker "POLY" is no longer active on the London or Moscow stock exchanges. The company now operates as Solidcore Resources plc, and its active ticker is CORE (trading in USD) and CORE.K (trading in Kazakhstenge) on the Astana International Exchange (AIX).
Can I still trade Polymetal shares on the London Stock Exchange?
No. Polymetal was fully delisted from the London Stock Exchange on August 29, 2023, following its corporate re-domiciliation to Kazakhstan. It cannot be traded on any UK exchange.
What was the Euroclear mandatory buyback price?
On December 22, 2025, Solidcore completed a mandatory buyback of blocked shares held in Euroclear at a price of $2.57 USD per share.
Is Solidcore Resources (Polymetal) paying a dividend?
No dividend was proposed for the financial year 2025. Management has indicated that while the company is highly profitable, cash is being prioritized to fund the $978 million Ertis POX construction. The capital return policy will be reviewed once key capital expenditure milestones are cleared.
How do I check the live Polymetal (Solidcore) share price?
You can track the live share price by visiting the official website of the Astana International Exchange (AIX) and searching for the ticker symbol CORE.
Conclusion
The story of the polymetal share price is one of the most remarkable corporate survival tales of the decade. By shedding its Russian assets, migrating to Kazakhstan, and rebranding as Solidcore Resources, the company has successfully protected its business from terminal sanctions failure.
With a robust net cash position of $464 million, a highly profitable 65% EBITDA margin, and the game-changing $978 million Ertis POX plant slated for 2028, Solidcore represents a unique, pure-play gold mining stock in Central Asia. For investors who navigated the turbulent transition, the current AIX share price of ~$8.54 offers a window into a highly profitable, de-risked future under the backing of Omani and global institutional capital.












