Vodafone Qatar begins big IPO test

The last Qatari initial public offering to come close to the size of Vodafone Qatar’s $952m share sale was Masraf Al Rayan’s IPO in early 2006. The issue was sold seven times over and subscriptions had to be held at a football stadium.

But Vodafone Qatar’s share sale, which opened for subscription this week, is being offered in a drastically different market.

The financial crisis has mauled the Doha stock market despite the country’s sterling economic fundamentals. Investor sentiment has recovered somewhat in recent weeks but the IPO will still be “a big test”, says Ahmed Al-Hammadi, head of EFG-Hermes’ asset management arm in Qatar.