XL Axiata Falls as Malaysian Parent Said Planning to Cut Stake

PT XL Axiata, the Indonesian wireless carrier, fell to the lowest in nearly a year after people with knowledge of the matter said its Malaysian parent company is planning to sell part of its stake.

Shares of XL Axiata dropped as much as 4.9 percent Tuesday and were down 3.4 percent to 2,560 rupiah at 12:29 a.m. in Jakarta, headed for their lowest close since October 2015. The benchmark Jakarta Stock Exchange Composite Index fell 1.6 percent. Axiata Group Bhd., Malaysia’s biggest mobile-phone operator, is seeking to trim stakes in some of its overseas operations in deals that could raise as much as $700 million, people familiar with the matter said.

Axiata, based in Kuala Lumpur, is seeking a buyer for about 11 percent of Indonesian unit XL Axiata, according to the people. It is also selling as much as 30 percent each of listed Sri Lanka unit Dialog Axiata Plc and closely held Cambodian subsidiary Smart Axiata Co., the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

Total debt at Axiata has risen 55 percent since the end of 2014 to reach 21.5 billion ringgit ($5.2 billion) at the end of June, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Axiata, which has interests in 10 countries across Asia, will use part of the proceeds from the divestments to cut borrowings, the people said.

Axiata continuously reviews various strategic options to enhance shareholders’ value, the company said in an e-mailed statement Tuesday. Since the middle of last year Axiata has been exploring options including rebalancing its portfolio and reviewing its shareholdings across subsidiaries, according to the statement.

The Malaysian company owns 83.3 percent of Dialog Axiata in Sri Lanka and 95.3 percent of Cambodian subsidiary Smart Axiata, according to its annual report. It also owns 66.4 percent of its Indonesian unit XL Axiata, whose shares have fallen 26 percent this year.

Axiata also has operations in Bangladesh and Pakistan, as well as minority stakes in Singapore telecommunications firm M1 Ltd. and Indian wireless carrier Idea Cellular Ltd. In April, Axiata completed the $1.4 billion acquisition of an 80 percent stake in Nepal’s Ncell Pvt.

Comments

Ukrainians injured as police dismantle Kiev 'tent city'

At least 10 demonstrators have been injured in clashes with Ukrainian police and another 100 detained in the capital Kiev after authorities began dismantling a makeshift "tent city" protesting against corruption. The tent city was set up in October by supporters of Mikheil Saakashvili, a former president of Georgia who has become an opposition politician in Ukraine. Saakashvili, a critic of corruption in Ukraine, was deported to Poland in February. He said he was "kidnapped" by Ukrainian authorities and removed from the country against his will. Andriy Kryshchneko, police chief of police, said at the camp on Saturday that "two court decisions" allowed authorities to search and dismantle the camp. Police said that explosives and other weapons were found at the scene

PayPal wants report from Sri Lanka: Sampath, three other banks to introduce service

Though the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) was first to introduce PayPal to Sri Lanka through the Sampath Bank, it is revealed that three other banks too have been now earmarked by the CBSL. A senior official from the CBSL told AdaderanaBiz, “We were to first introduce PayPal through the Sampath Bank. However, we now plan to introduce this service to the country through four banks. We also plan to gradually involve the rest of the banks in the country.” While the CBSL is discussing with the PayPal branch in India to introduce the service to Sri Lanka, PayPal’s Indian arm has reportedly requested a report on Sri Lanka’s exports. The senior CBSL official told AdaderanaBiz that they would be submitting such a report and hence the introduction of PayPal to Sri Lanka would face a slight delay. Though cash cannot be remitted to Sri Lanka through the world renowned PayPal money transfer service sending money from Sri Lanka is possible even now.

ASSIGNING OF PREFERENTIAL NUMBERS FOR LG POLLS COMPLETED

The Election Secretariat announced that assigning preferential numbers for candidates of the Local Government election to be held for 67 bodies has been completed. Preparations are currently underway to hold the polls under the 2010 electoral register, Additional Elections Commissioner W.P. Sumanasiri said. The electoral register of the year 2010 is scheduled to be certified on June 31.

Share Blogs

Search This Blog