State-owned Ethio Telecom has set a share price of 300 birr ($2.54) for the 100 million shares it plans to sell via the company’s mobile payment service prior to a stock market listing, the company’s CEO Frehiwot Tamiru said on Wednesday.
The establishment of a bourse next month, as well as the privatisation of state-owned enterprises, is part of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s push to open up Ethiopia to greater private investment.
“This is an historic moment,” Abiy said on Wednesday.
The 10% stake in the company will be offered to Ethiopians, Frehiwot said, marking the first step towards the government divesting a further 45% stake in the telecoms provider to foreign investors.
($1 = 118.0993 birr)