Zain gets green light from ISC for IPO

Kuwaiti-backed cellco Zain Iraq has been given the green light to list on the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX), Zawya writes. Under the terms of their licences, Iraq’s mobile providers were obliged to list 25% of their shares on the ISX by August 2011. To date, only Asiacell, a subsidiary of Qatar’s Ooredoo, has fulfilled this obligation, having listed 25% of its shares on the ISX from February 2013. Zain confirmed that it has now received approval for the initial public offering (IPO) from the Iraq Securities Commission (ISC), having submitted the first set of application documents late last month. A statement from the company noted that it was ‘in the process of carrying [out] all necessary and statutory procedures and steps to ensure this is completed in a timely fashion.’ Details of the mechanics of the flotation would be revealed ‘over the next few weeks,’ the cellco added.