SINGAPORE: Malaysian mobile data service company U Mobile is planning a domestic initial public offering (IPO) that is expected to raise more than RM2.3bil as early as the first half of 2025, say sources.
The Kuala Lumpur-headquartered company will file an IPO application to the regulator later this month, or August, for a deal that would value the firm at more than RM9.4bil, the sources added.
The deal, if it proceeds, could be the largest IPO in Malaysia in nearly eight years, according to LSEG data.
Proceeds raised will be used for mobile data network expansion, among others.
“Our corporate policy is to not comment on speculation as necessary announcements will be made if there are any concrete developments of that nature,” U Mobile said in a statement in response to Reuters’ query yesterday.
It added that it is preparing to respond and participate in the tender to build Malaysia’s second 5G network.
U Mobile has planned to hold an IPO on the local stock exchange since 2014.
If successful, its IPO would be Malaysia’s largest since South Korea’s Lotte Chemical Titan Holdings Bhd raised US$879mil in 2017. U Mobile’s listing would also help carry the current strong IPO market activity in Malaysia into next year.
The country’s IPO market has been the best performer in South-East Asia in the first half of this year, according to LSEG data.The amount raised from Malaysian IPOs amounted to RM2.9bil in the first six months of this year, up almost 24% from RM2.4bil the same period a year ago, LSEG data showed.
Founded in 2006, U Mobile is Malaysia’s youngest telecommunication company with a network ready for 5G, according to its websites. Its stakeholders include Malaysian tycoon Vincent Tan and ST Telemedia, a Singaporean strategic investor wholly owned by the country’s state investor Temasek. — Reuters
