Citing a company spokesman, the Reuters news agency reported that the company will list a quarter of its shares on the local stock market, which is likely to be the country's largest ever floatation.
The record is unlikely to last for long though, as the other two networks are also required to list their shares on the stock market as a condition of their operating licenses.
Asiacell secured approval for its listing from the stock market regulators in August, and had until December 25th to confirm that the listing would take place.
Asiacell is a consortium is comprised of Asiacell Iraq - an earlier license holder, Qatar's Qtel (30%) and investment banking group, MerchantBridge (19%). Asiacell Iraq was established in the city of Suleimaniah in 1999 by businessman Faruk Rasool, who remains its Chairman.
The Iraq Stock Exchange currently has shares worth around US$3.7 billion listed on its bourse. The listing of the three mobile networks is expected to nearly double the capitalisation of its market.
On the web: Reuters
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