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Shares in Meetic, which is active in 13 countries and boasts 14 million users, showed a 11.21-percent gain at 1200 GMT to 24.80 euros. The CAC 40 index of leading shares was 0.99 percent lower.

Meetic claims that 18,000 new users fill out their profile on the site each day by completing a brief registration form demanding personal details and preferences for a partner.

More than 3.9 million shares, the equivalent of 25 percent of the company, were sold by Meetic to finance future expansion.

Shares had begun trading on Thursday at 22.30 euros, at the top end of a trading range of 19.20-22.30 euros fixed during the preparation of the floatation.

The rise in the price of shares to 24.50 euros values the whole of the company at about 380 million euros.

Meetic is controlled by founder and chief executive Marc Simoncini, who controls 43.13 percent of the company and 55.42 percent of the voting rights.

Press Release.

[tags: meetic]