Telenor Xpress 4 - 2000

Q&A: CFO Torstein Moland

Xpress sat down with Telenor's chief financial officer, Torstein Moland to ask him about the IPO, Telenor and today's global financial markets.

1. HOW HAS THE IPO PROCESS AFFECTED TELENOR?
First, Telenor has raised almost USD 1.7 billion in new capital, which will allow Telenor to continue to grow. Second, Telenor has obtained an acquisition currency, and third, Telenor management has learned a considerable amount about the investor perception of Telenor and how the company rates against its competition through an exchange of views with research analysts and institutional investors.

2. HOW WILL THE IPO AFFECT TELENOR'S CUSTOMERS AND PARTNERS?
As a listed company, Telenor's public profile will be further enhanced. As the capital market puts pressure on Telenor to gain market share, the company will offer more customer-focused products and services. As for our partners, Telenor will provide additional disclosures, thus making Telenor a more attractive potential partner. In the future Telenor will have acquisition currency to offer potential partners an ownership interest in Telenor.

3. HOW HAS THE IPO CHANGED TELENOR'S FOCUS?
The focus on the part of Telenor management is to live up to the market's expectations as far as EBITDA growth is concerned. So long as we do that, we are confident that the investment community will value our shares correctly. What matters to us is not where the shares are now, but where they will trade in the future.

4. HOW DID TELENOR ARRIVE AT THE INTRO-DUCTORY SHARE PRICE?
The basis for the valuation is Telenor's equity story and projections seen in the context of the trading multiples of similar companies. However, the price range is only fixed following the so-called pre-marketing period, during which the syndicate collects feedback from investors on both the equity story and the valuation.



Text by: Alexander Wardwell