Zain Iraq has reportedly applied to list on the local stock exchange, nearly four years after the terms of its mobile licence required it to.
The subsidiary of the Kuwait-based Zain Group has filed its first set of application documents for listing with…
Zain Iraq has reportedly applied to list on the local stock exchange, nearly four years after the terms of its mobile licence required it to.
The subsidiary of the Kuwait-based Zain Group has filed its first set of application documents for listing with the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISE), according to a group spokesperson cited by Reuters. The application is subject to the approval of the exchange and telecoms regulators, the spokesperson added.
ISC chairman Abdul Razzaq Al-Saadi was quoted saying Zain Iraq has preliminary approval to list, however certain technicalities – such as the mechanism of the listing – need “to be ironed out”.
Once the application is approved, Zain will have two months to list, Al-Saadi noted.
Iraq’s three mobile network operators, which also include Ooredoo’s Asiacell and Korek, are each required under their 2007 2G licence terms to list a 25% stake. All three missed the August 2011 deadline, however Asiacell finally floated in February 2013. Qatar-based Ooredoo raised US$1.24bn from the sale of a quarter of its shares.
Zain Iraq and Korek are reportedly levying daily fines for failing to list.
Zain was not immediately available for comment.
