"As the German exchange launches its new market for small- and mid-cap firms, eager to float more cheaply and with lighter regulation than on the main market, analysts are sceptical whether international companies and investors will take the bait.

"London has established itself with AIM, which was launched much earlier. And the financial community is there," said Giuseppe Amato, a strategist at Lang & Schwarz, in Duesseldorf.

Investors also note that the new market -- Entry Standard -- will evoke memories of the Neuer Markt index, which was hit by a series of accounting scandals before it was closed in March 2003 as the tech bubble burst.

"The very much lower regulation standards could awake fears that we will see again the irregularities or stock gamblings seen at the Neuer Markt," said Karl Fickel, managing partner at Lupus Alpha fund manager, which specialises in small-cap shares. "