MTN Nigeria, the local unit of MTN Group said it plans to go on an initial public offering, IPO, this year but to be executed in a different way.
The Johannesburg listed company said its Nigerian IPO which is planned for later this year will leverage the Internet to allow more Nigerians participate in the offer.
Nikiwe Tsaagane, who spoke on behalf of Nigeria’s largest mobile carrier said:
“It is going to offer an important role in the capital market as it will be one of the largest transactions in Africa. This will showcase Nigeria in the global economy if we can achieve it.
“The transaction is structured by ensuring that its data based and inclusive as we ensure that our Nigerian customers are able to participate,” he said.
It would be recalled that MTN Group had announced it will be listing 30% of its ordinary shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, but the plan was further pushed forward after the company’s local unit was slammed with a regulatory fine of NGN330 billion fine.
In 2016 when the planned IPO was announced, MTN Group said the offering would happen in the first quarter of this year. Stanbic IBTC Capital and other international financial advisers were appointed to package the IPO.
Should MTN Nigeria list on the NSE this year, it will be the second telecommunications company to have listed in the exchange. In 2007, a CDMA telecom service provider had listed its shares on the NSE but was later delisted in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis and the company’s eventual bankruptcy.
The listing will therefore make MTN the only mobile carrier on the exchange. Globacom, the second largest carrier, Airtel, a local unit of Bharti Airtel Holding B.V. are privately-owned with no path to an IPO disclosed till date.
MTN Group is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, JSE with Vodacom and Telkom as it’s rival on the same exchange.
