Credit Suisse to advise Vietnam's MobiFone IPO
HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam has selected Credit Suisse (CSGN.VX) to advise on the initial public offering for MobiFone, one of the country's top three largest mobile phone network providers, the Vietnam News Agency reported on Monday.
Credit Suisse was picked from a shortlist of 10 companies, and MobiFone is expected to issue shares in early 2009, the agency said in a report, quoting the Information and Communication Ministry.
Hanoi-based MobiFone would sell 30 percent of its shares at the IPO, the report said, without giving any dates.
Vietnam's main stock market .VNI has so far this year lost half of its 2007 gain, falling 51 percent after advancing 23 percent in the whole of last year. The market slowdown has made many companies reluctant to go ahead with their share issues.
The IPO by MobiFone, which ranks after military-run Viettel and before state-owned Vinaphone in the number of mobile phone subscribers, is behind schedule. It had initially expected to sell shares in May or June this year.
MobiFone, or Vietnam Mobile Telecom Services Company, has projected revenue growth to slow to 17 percent this year after a 30 percent rise in 2007.
The company, owned by Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications group (VNPT), aims to triple its subscribers to 30 million by the end of 2008 from 11 million real users at the end of 2007.
France Telecom (FTE.PA), Singapore Telecommunications (STEL.SI), Norwegian telecoms group Telenor (TEL.OL) and Japan's NTT DoCoMo (9437.T) are among foreign firms keen to bid for MobiFone shares.
VNPT has said it would own one-third of MobiFone, which uses GSM technology, after the IPO.
(Reporting by Ho Binh Minh; Editing by Ben Tan)
