Vodacom has once again delayed it’s public listing on the Dar-es-Salaam Stock Exchange (DSE), despite its successful initial public offering.
The Vodafone-owned telco announced on June 5 that more than 40 000 Tanzanians, many of them first-time participants in the capital market, have subscribed for shares in the IPO.
The company described this as a milestone that executes on Government’s vision to empower more Tanzanians to own stakes in local companies.
The South African-based firm was expected to list its shares on May 16, but this was postponed to June 12 and this has been missed also.
However, Vodacom Tanzania has once more postponed the listing of shares floated through a mandatory public offering due to regulatory delays blamed on a large number of applicants, according to the Business Daily.
Orbit Securities, the lead transaction advisor for the Tsh476 billion (Sh22 billion) offer, told Business Daily that it is still awaiting approval of the share register by the Capital Markets and Securities Authority (CMSA) before the stocks can be listed on the Dar-es-Salaam bourse.
The Vodacom Tanzania IPO, priced at Tsh850 (Sh39.50) per share, is billed the largest public offering in East Africa’s second-biggest economy, giving its handlers a headache.
Vodacom Tanzania was launched in 2000 and is a subsidiary of South African-based Vodacom Group, which is a unit of British mobile phone giant, Vodafone.
In contrast, the 2008 Safaricom IPO attracted 800,000 applicants and Sh226 billion.
Shares sold through the Vodacom Tanzania IPO were first due to be listed on May 16, but this was postponed to June 12 following a three-week extension of the offer.
For more read: Vodacom Tanzania pushes back share listing once again
