Go! Go! Go! Axiata

Yes, that's the way to go about it. Refinance your debt whenever you can. Take advantage of longer payback periods and lower fund costs. Hopefully, minority shareholders will benefit on the long -run from these deft market maneuvers.

And so this week,we have an announcement that Axiata,owner of Malaysia’s second-biggest mobile phone operator, has deferred an Islamic bond sale to the week beginning Aug. 16 to complete documentation, according to a person familiar with the matter.What gives?

It plans to sell RM4.2 billion (US$1.3 billion) of five-, seven- and 10-year sukuk to refinance debt, and the greatest news of all-walla! the Employees Provident Fund (EPF)will buy most of the notes.How convenient!

Axiata, Malaysia’s best-performing index stock this year, has RM6.7 billion of group bonds and loans due to mature through 2020, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It raised US$300 million in April from its first sale of dollar notes.


So let us hope that Axiata's share prices will move beyond RM5.20 because that is the price the shareholders have been saddled with after TMI split away from TM some years back. From RM8.80, the share price fell after a billion payback to parent TM and the news of an impending rights killed whatever was left of TMI's goodwill.

Those who successfully  subscribed for excess shares or bought it at low, low prices are just beginning to see some worthwhile pofits now. I do hope the latest Axiata's corporate maneuvers can bring it back to its heydays as a market leader!

We await the return of the phoenix!