Business

Wednesday August 26, 2009

Axiata not for sale

By B.K. SIDHU


Khazanah: Telco is long-term investment

PETALING JAYA: Sources close to Khazanah Nasional Bhd say Axiata Group Bhd is a core asset for the government investment agency and not for sale.

They said Khazanah want to keep its 44.5% stake in Axiata, which it (Axiata) deemed as a long-term investment for the agency.

There is speculation in the market place that Khazanah, being the largest shareholder with 44.5% stake in Axiata, may hive off its stake in the regional mobile telecommunications company.

It is said that a proposal for the stake purchase had been put forth to the Government and a businessman was keen to buy Khazanah’s stake in Axiata.

During the Invest Malaysia conference last month, Khazanah managing director Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar said the investment agency would be more active in pursuing deals in the second half of this year but Axiata was certainly not one of those investments that it wanted to offload as the telecoms company was viewed by Khazanah as a “core asset”.

It is no surprise that there are parties interested in Axiata given the pace of its growth since it demerged from Telekom Malaysia Bhd.

It is in a transformation stage to become a pan-Asian player and one of the top picks of investors when they talk about regional telcos.

The work of the management team is bearing fruit even though some of its investments are subject to more risks than others.

But, to be represented in two big markets – India and Indonesia – is a huge plus for Axiata as these markets have a lot of growth potential.

Only time will tell whether its overseas ventures will turn in more income than its local unit but, for now, analysts will continue to watch how Celcom (M) Bhd will surprise the market place with its record profits every quarter.

Axiata, which was due to announce its results today, has postponed it to tomorrow for reasons unknown.


AXIATA : [Stock Watch] [News]


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