Airtel Africa has announced that the initial public offering of its subsidiary in Malawi was a success, as the offering was fully subscribed.
Nairametrics had reported that the telecommunication company planned to list its shares in the Southeastern African nation.
In December, Airtel Africa had said it would raise $37.5 million in Malawi Stock Exchange through an initial public offering, allowing the Malawian investing public to own 20% shares of the network provider. The listing, according to the parent company, was fully subscribed.
The total number of shares offered was 2.2 billion, which represents 20% of shares outstanding, a statement made available on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) revealed.
Airtel Africa added that “The price has been set at MK 12.69 (USD 0.02) per ordinary share resulting in gross proceeds of approximately MK 27.92 billion (USD 37.5million).”
Why Airtel Africa listed in Malawi? Airtel Africa listed its shares in Malawi in order to comply with the laws of the country. Section 35 of the Communications Act of 2016, regulation 26 (2) of the communication (Telecommunications and Broadcasting Licensing), Regulations of 2016 and Clause 42.2 of the Subsidiary’s operating license requires the company to have at least 20% local Malawian shareholding.
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The network provider, which has subsidiaries in 14 African countries, employed the services of Standard Bank Plc in Malawi to act as book runner and as Lead Transaction Advisor to the company.
The listing plan for the Malawian Stock Exchange market was conceived eight months after Airtel Africa listed its shares on Nigeria’s stock market. While Airtel Malawi is one of Airtel’s smaller markets, Airtel Nigeria is its key revenue driver in Africa.
The company accounts for 33 million subscribers in Nigeria, making it the second-largest network provider in the country behind MTN Nigeria which has about 54 million subscribers. Airtel Nigeria listed in Nigeria in July 2019.