Safaricom rises on its first day of trading

June 10, 2008

1 Min Read
IPO Success in Africa

9:00 AM -- If you're looking for some positive telecom industry news, look no further than Kenya, where mobile operator Safaricom Ltd. has staged a successful IPO on the Nairobi Stock Exchange.

Check out this BBC report for the details.

Vodafone Group plc (NYSE: VOD) still retains a fair chunk of the operator -- its majority-owned joint venture, Vodafone Kenya, has retained all of its 40 percent stake in Safaricom. The Kenyan government raised about $833 million by selling a 25 percent stake in the IPO: It still owns 35 percent of the operator.

There's clearly plenty of telecom growth potential in Kenya, as Vodafone isn't the only Tier 1 operator that's invested in the country -- a consortium led by Orange (NYSE: FTE) took control of incumbent Telkom Kenya in November 2007. (See FT Adds to African Assets.)

And, according to Vodafone, the Kenyans are receptive to new, pragmatic services, such as mobile-based money transfers. (See Vodafone Eyes Emerging Acquisitions.)

— Ray Le Maistre, International News Editor, Light Reading

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