Mobile firm decides to go public in Moscow, London

MOSCOW - The Associated Press

Russia’s second-largest mobile phone operator MegaFon says it will go public in London and Moscow in November. AFP photo

Russia’s second-largest mobile phone operator MegaFon says it will go public in London and Moscow in November.

MegaFon, the last of Russia’s big three mobile company to hold an IPO, said yesterday in a regulatory filing that it would sell an unspecified amount of stock at Moscow’s MICEX and the London Stock Exchange by year-end.

MegaFon is controlled by Russian tycoon Alisher Usamov’s investment vehicle.

Shares will be sold by Swedish co-owner TeliaSonera, which owns 35.6 percent, and MegaFon itself.
Norway’s TeliaSonera is also a shareholder in Turkey’s largest mobile operator Turkcell.

MegaFon, second only to MTS in the number of subscribers, is focused on the Russian market, unlike MTS and Vimpelcom which have expanded outside Russia.

Moscow-based investment bank UralSib estimates the company value at $13 billion. Analysts speculated that MegaFon could float 20 percent of its stock.