Axiata’s Unit Plans Biggest Bangladesh IPO in a Decade to Expand

(Bloomberg) -- Robi Axiata Ltd., the Bangladesh unit of Malaysia’s biggest telecommunication company by revenue, plans to raise 5.24 billion taka ($62 million) in an initial share sale to expand in the South Asian nation.

The venture between Malaysia’s Axiata Group Bhd. and India’s Bharti Airtel Ltd. plans to sell 523.8 million shares at 10 taka apiece, Bangladesh Securities & Exchange Commission said on its website on Wednesday. Axiata owns 68.7% of Robi.

Bangladesh’s biggest initial public offering since 2010 will help Robi grow its network in a nation that the Asian Development Bank forecasts will expand 5.2% this year, the fastest pace in the region.

First-time share sales are roaring back across the world as abundant liquidity helps equity markets look past the still-spreading pandemic. Bangladesh’s benchmark DSE Broad Index has risen 38% from its March low. Robi’s IPO is the biggest since energy firm MJL Bangladesh Ltd. sold shares in 2010.

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