- The trust in the Maldivian stock market will grow
- Increases the interest of the public
- Stock market will become more active
"We should by shares this time," before these words leave the mouth, a friend will say "What is the use of that? That is pointless". This is commonly how the public views the stock market. There are many reasons why the public feel this way. A reason for this is because the companies who sold shares previously failing to make a good profit, disheartening many people and destroying the trust the public had of companies in the stock market. While the public had a great interest in the stock market at a time, the annual meetings held by those companies today shows how much the public opinion has changed.
But signs are pointing towards a change now. This is because multinational telecom company "Ooredoo" has began preparations of listing themselves on the stock market. The question remains, what change could Ooredoo bring to the Maldivian stock market?
The chairman of "Capital Market Development of Authority" (CMDA) Ahmed Naseer informs "Avas" that this is because Ooredoo being listed will bring trust into the stock market.
The head of Investor Relations for Ooredoo Maldives, Arushee Mohamed says that Ooredoo has also been listed in the markets of Oman, Palestine as well as Iraq, and that this is a step forward.
The Maldivian stock market has 6 companies listed on it. These companies are the national bank BML, STO, MTCC, Dhiraagu, HDFC, Amana Takaful as well as the recently listed Spectre company who are making preparations to sell shares. Ooredoo is the latest company to begin making preparations to sell shares.
The biggest difference made by Ooredoo being listed is that it is a Multinational Company, which Qatar has a share in. The fact that it is one of the worlds best telecom companies is also another reason. This company also provides service in Africa, the Middle East as well as in countries such as Singapore. The "child" of this company which provides service in the Maldives, Ooredoo Maldives started giving service in the year 2005. This company brought a big change to the telecom business in the Maldives. And they have invested an amount close to 250 million dollars to improve the field in Maldives.
"The preparations for selling shares is ongoing" The head of Investor Relations for Ooredoo Maldives Arushee said.
The company is set to start selling shares sometime in the first 6 months of next year. Arushee said that the price of the shares, as well how many shares a single person can buy will be announced during April of next year. And that they will start selling shares 14 days after the announcement.
The public wants a fast profit
The Maldivian stock market is very different compared to stock markets from around the world. The people who buy shares from the stock market opened in 2002 usually hide their shares. They then take the annual profits distributed by the company. The people who buy the shares want to receive the best price. This is the biggest worry of the public.
Moosa Rameez, aged 39 years, who bought stocks from a major company says that the biggest problem is the lowering of profits from the shares. "Should the profits from the stock increase year by year? This is where the problem starts" Rameez said.
The chairman of CMDA Naseer said that as Ooredoo is a major multinational company, the expectations of the public will be high.
"The public by everything to make a profit from it. The Maldivian stock exchange is not so active. Buying and selling occur in other countries of the world. But in the Maldives its only about buying," Naseer said.
"Everyone knows that the telecom industry is a profitable one. So the expectations are that there will be a good profit from Ooredoo. The public will benefit from this. This will change the views on the capital market". No matter what happens, Ooredoo has been listed in the Maldivian stock market. The changes this will bring to the market will be depend on how Ooredoo sell their stocks next year. But the biggest step forward is the trust gained in the stock market with Ooredoo's listing.
