International Journal of Management, Accounting and Economics
Vol. 9, No. 3, March, 2022
ISSN 2383-2126 (Online)
© Author(s), All Rights Reserved www.ijmae.com
144
Case Study
The Strategic Journey of the Biggest IPO in
Bangladesh: The Case of Robi Axiata Limited
Md. Tahidur Rahman
1
and Md. Ariful Haque Chowdhury
Department of Business Administration, Bangladesh Army International
University of Science and Technology, Cumilla, Bangladesh
Syed Zabid Hossain
Department of Accounting and Information Systems, University of Rajshahi,
Rajshahi, Bangladesh
Abstract
Robi Axiata Limited (Robi)—a multinational cellphone operator—got the
nod for the ever-biggest initial public offering (IPO) from Bangladesh's
regulatory body on 14 October 2020. The IPO process ended on 24 December
2020 through its debut on the country's two stock exchanges. Based on both
primary and secondary data, this study intends to depict the 23 years strategic
journey of Robi till its IPO. Robi's IPO was oversubscribed by 5.75 times
compared to its counterpart telecom giant Grameenphone by 3.5 times. Beyond
the most common motive of settling the loan, network expansion was the only
motive for Robi's IPO. The IPO enabled the company to reduce its corporate
tax and create a positive brand image among stakeholders. Before the IPO,
rebranding from AKTEL into Robi and its merger with Airtel were two major
turning points. The merger contributed significantly to the company's market
share and overall performance, which ultimately led the company to raise the
largest-ever amount from the capital market through IPO.
Keywords: IPO, Primary market, Rebranding, Merger, Bangladesh capital
market.
1
Corresponding author’s Email: towhidais@gmail.com