Telekom keen to appoint advisors for Celcom offering

Telekom Malaysia will appoint advisors for its upcoming IPO of shares in mobile operator Celcom by the end of the year, according to industry sources. Telekom is looking to raise in the region of USD750 million to USD800 million from the IPO and is keen to launch the offering as soon as possible to take advantage of the currently favourable market conditions. It has targeted the third quarter of 2004 for the sale, although some analysts believe it will try and push the process through even earlier. Press rumours are circulating that Goldman Sachs, UBS Bank and Morgan Stanley are amongst the investment banks to have already pitched for the business.