Wednesday, July 4, 2007

Spice Communications raises $128 mn from public issue

Spice Communications Ltd, an Indian mobile phone venture partly owned by Telekom Malaysia Bhd., raised Rs520 crore ($128 million) in an initial public offering as investors try to tap a market whose numbers almost doubled in 2006.

The Noida-based company priced the 113.1 million new shares at Rs46 apiece, the top end of a Rs41-46 range, according to an email sent to investors. The stock will trade on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The mobile operator and larger Indian rivals, led by Bharti Airtel Ltd and Reliance Communications Ltd, are attracting investors trying to get access to the world’s fastest-growing market last year. Spice, which offers its services in the southern state of Karnataka and Punjab in the north, plans to spend $140 million during the next two years to boost coverage.

Last month, Spice sold stakes worth $10.1 million each to Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Spinnaker, the company said.Enam Financial Consultants Pvt. Ltd and UBS AG arranged the Spice share sale.

Read more in The Livemint article.

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