WARSAW (Reuters) - The Polish unit of French lender BNP Paribas (>> BNP PARIBAS) has set the maximum price in its planned share issue at 45 zlotys per share, which values the transaction at up to 386 million zlotys (77.50 million pounds), the company said late on Monday.

The lender said last week it planned to offer 8.58 million shares to institutional and individual investors in Poland and selected investors abroad to meet the Polish financial regulator's requirement to raise its free float to 15 percent.

Poland's financial watchdog has asked several foreign lenders to raise the number of shares other investors can own in their Polish units listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange.

A greater free float improves a stock's liquidity and ensures a more diverse shareholder base, a particular issue for some large, foreign-owned companies.

BNP Paribas units hold nearly all of BNP Paribas Bank Polska. 387 million zlotys ($122.15 million)

(Agnieszka Barteczko; Editing by Carol Bishopric)

Stocks treated in this article : BNP PARIBAS, BNP PARIBAS BANK POLSKA SA