Business Desk :
Mobile network operator Banglalink may be the third telco company to get listed with the country’s capital market.
Its senior officials met with the Bangladesh Securities and Exchange Commission (BSEC) chairman Prof Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam on Monday, where they stated their intent to offload 10% of its paid-up capital.
Veon chairman emeritus and co-founder Augie K Fabela II, Veon chief executive officer Kaan Terzioglu, Banglalink chief executive officer Erik Aas and its chief financial officer Cem Velipasaoglu were present in the meeting. Banglalink is fully owned by Telecom Ventures Ltd (previously Orascom Telecom Ventures Ltd) of Malta, which is a 100% owned subsidiary of Global Telecom Holding, which is, in turn, a subsidiary of the Dutch holding company VEON. BSEC officials said that the Banglalink officials discussed the process and benefits of listing on the market and expressed their interest in listing on the stock market in Bangladesh.
Banglalink posted the highest revenue growth in six years in 2021.
The revenue of the third-largest mobile phone operator in Bangladesh rose by 5.1% year-on-year to Tk4,794 crore in 2021.
Banglalink’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization was Tk2,000 crore in 2021 against Tk1,900 crore in the previous year.
The annual revenue grew by 0.7% year-on-year to Tk4,560 crore in 2020. It was Tk4,530 crore in 2019.
The number of Banglalink’s connections was about 3.74 crore in January 2022.
In November 2020, Robi Axiata Limited raised Tk523.79 crore from the country’s capital market through an initial public offering, which was the biggest-ever public offer in Bangladesh.
Grameenphone, the leading mobile phone operator in the country, raised Tk486 crore through an IPO in July, 2009, which was the biggest IPO before Robi.
