Wataniya Palestine, the territory’s second largest mobile operator, will list 15% of its equity on the Palestinian Exchange on December 2.
Currently Kuwait-based Wataniya Telecom, which itself is majority owned by Qatar’s QTel, holds 57% of Wataniya…
Wataniya Palestine, the territory’s second largest mobile operator, will list 15% of its equity on the Palestinian Exchange on December 2.
Currently Kuwait-based Wataniya Telecom, which itself is majority owned by Qatar’s QTel, holds 57% of Wataniya Palestine.
The offer will comprise new shares, with Wataniya Palestine’s current shareholders, QTel and the publicly owned Palestine Investment Fund, will not be diluting their shareholding at this time.
The IPO has a fixed offer price of US$1.30 (E0.93) per share and the offer period is November 7 until December 2, 2010 and it is hoped that the IPO will raise US$50.3m (E36m), valuing the company at a nominal US$335.4m (E240.32m).
All proceeds will be used for general business and operational purposes, and to assist the funding of the balance of fees payable under the telco’s operating licence.
Wataniya Mobile’s CEO, Bassam Hannoun said: “By offering our shares to the public, we are providing investors with the chance to actively participate in our future development, at what is an early stage in our history. We feel we have a very exciting time ahead, and look forward to welcoming new investors to join us as we continue to grow our community of customers in Palestine.”
Wataniya Mobile was launched in November 2009 and currently covers 95% of the Palestinian population in the West Bank. The company is mooting an expansion into Gaza, where it is licensed to operate, but has not developed its network due to ongoing political troubles. Despite a rapid increase in mobile penetration rates, Palestine’s mobile penetration remains low at only 49% at the end of 2009. This currently constitutes one of the lowest penetration rates in the region.
HSBC Bank Middle East is sole global coordinator and sole bookrunner with Arab Bank as regional coordinator.