Strong Demand Seen for Ivory Coast’s Sucrivoire Ahead of Listing

ABIDJAN (Capital Markets in Africa) – Shares in Sucrivoire SA of Ivory Coast will go on sale Oct. 5 as the lead arranger of an initial public offering forecasts strong demand for a stake in the sugar producer that the government is disposing of.

Sucrivoire is preparing to list on the Bourse Regionale des Valeurs Mobilieres in Ivory Coast’s commercial capital, Abidjan, as part of a privatization program by the West African nation to boost public finances and make companies more efficient.

Sucrivoire’s shares will be sold at 13,000 CFA francs ($21.92) each, raising about 14.7 billion francs for the government’s 23 percent stake, or 1.13 million shares, Omo-Dele Egue, general director of BOA Capital Securities, said by phone from Abidjan on Thursday. The company will reserve a 5 percent stake for staff while the remaining 18 percent will be sold to the public in the offering that ends Oct. 18, he said.

“Given the current interest for IPOs and the quality of the operation, the subscriptions may close early,” Egue said. “The pricing is good, we did a good valuation and we hope the security will appreciate once listed.”

Sucrivoire General-Secretary Olivier Daipo didn’t answer calls seeking comment.

Source: Bloomberg Business News