Marico Bangladesh plans for an IPO

Marico Bangladesh Limited (MBL), a subsidiary of fast moving consumer goods company Marico will be listed on the  Dhaka Stock Exchange and the Chittagong Stock Exchange later this year.

MBL has received the approval of the Bangladesh Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to its proposal to make an Initial Public Offer (IPO) in Bangladesh. The IPO has been proposed at a price of Taka 90 per share of the face value of Taka 10 and is scheduled to open in August 2009.

MBL will issue 1,492,100 ordinary shares (about 5 per cent of MBL’s equity) thereby raising Taka 135 Million. The proceeds of the IPO will be used to strengthen MBL’s financials to enable continued growth.

This will be the first time that an overseas subsidiary of Marico will be going public.  Milind Sarwate, Chief- HR & Strategy said, “It will also be for the first time that a Bangladeshi subsidiary of an Indian Company will have an IPO in Bangladesh."

Vijay Subramaniam,  chief executive officer, International Business, elaborated, “Bangladesh has been an important part of Marico’s global strategy. Over the past nine years, we have consistently invested in Bangladesh. Our “Think Global, Act Local” approach has helped MBL record a compounded annual growth rate of 71 per cent in turnover over the past 3 years. The IPO is a further step towards localising the Marico business in Bangladesh, through local ownership.”