Anatoliy Frolenkov, a telecom, IT, and media market consultant, explained why Kyivstar’s potential listing on the NASDAQ stock exchange is a great success for Ukraine.
Anatoliy Frolenkov, a telecom, IT, and media market consultant, explained why Kyivstar’s potential listing on the NASDAQ stock exchange is a great success for Ukraine.
Recently, VEON, the parent company of Kyivstar, announced the signing of an agreement with the American investment company Cohen Circle, which brings the Ukrainian company closer to listing on the US stock exchange. VEON will merge with Cohen Circle, which is already traded on the US exchange, which will allow Kyivstar to go public bypassing an IPO .
This will allow Kyivstar to become one of the first Ukrainian companies to be listed on American stock exchanges, and will also help attract new international investors.
«You can look for betrayal as much as you want, but the fact remains: a company from Ukraine (yes, the very country that they are trying to burn with war) is going public on the American stock exchange. This is not just courage — it is a challenge. We pay tribute to the management of VEON, which found the courage to do this in advance,» Anatoly Frolenkov noted on his Facebook.
According to him, despite the fact that this is not a classic IPO, but a SPAC, it is still an important signal to investors that the risk may be justified.
«NASDAQ is the Champions League for tech companies. I understand that not everyone who uses mobile communication plays on the exchange, and the 100k+ bullpen has clouded the memory of classic players, but let me remind you that NASDAQ is an exchange for high-tech companies. It is there that our favorite Apple, Tesla, Microsoft, Google, etc. are traded. And now our Ukrainian company will be represented there, and even from my favorite telecom — it’s really, really cool,» the expert explained.
He says this is a positive sign for Ukraine and the Ukrainian business climate. Frolenkov pointed out that SPAC is a special mechanism for going public, in which investors invest money in a «blank check» company, which is then merged with a real business. For the organizer, this allows him to bypass the complex and lengthy procedure of a classic IPO.
«Everything is simple: faster, cheaper, more profitable. An investor can significantly increase their investments by buying a share for only $10. If successful, they can increase in price many times over and bring the investor a profit or the $10 will be returned,» Anatoly Frolenkov pointed out.
In his opinion, Cohen Circle can become a new stimulus for the development of «non-traditional areas of Kyivstar», such as Kyivstar Tech, Helsi or Kyivstar TV.
«European and American money has come into our industry. And with NASDAQ investors, this is just confirmation that our telecom is becoming truly global… The entry of our operator into NASDAQ is not just a victory for some company. This is a signal for the entire Ukrainian market: despite all the difficulties, we are recognized and appreciated,» the expert believes.
It was previously reported that Kyivstar would merge with the SPAC company Cohen Circle, which would allow it to bypass the IPO, but Kyivstar denied the information regarding the merger.
