Telecom Sector Investment Options Inside Pakistan
As I have written before, it is not easy for individual investors to invest in Pakistan’s telecom sector as majority of the companies are not listed on any of the Pakistan stock exchange. This works in favor of Ufone and its parent PTCL, listed as PTC on Karachi Stock Exchange (see wikipedia entry on KSE) even though the investor section of the PTCL web site does a lousy job of public relations for investors.Â
This was also mentioned in Pakistan telecom sector review section of the July issue of Pakistan Pulse, an investment strategy report from Merrill Lynch:  Â
Lack of actionable ideas restricts choices
Despite the immense potential, general lack of listed telecom companies and price distortion due to potential merger and acquisition stories restrict actionable ideas in the sector. None of the six cellular companies are listed and only four out of the 38 fixed line and WLL operators (operational and non operational) and 12 LDI operators are listed. The merger of four WorldCALL group companies in 2006 has shrunk the universe further and to top it all, the four too are surrounded by M&A stories. If you bring size and liquidity into the picture, we believe the incumbent PTCL remains the only liquid investable stock in the telecom space in Pakistan.
Perhaps what’s needed is a new generation of technology startups in Pakistan with their successful IPOs.
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