As investors grow increasingly selective about individual Russian companies, some are finding the overall attractions of Kazakhstan more compelling. The recent initial public offering (IPO) of KazMunaiGas Exploration Production (KMGEP) heralds more of the same from the central Asian republic, while adding a certain polish to Credit Suisse’s reputation for emerging markets flotations.
In late September, state oil conglomerate KazMunaiGas (KMG) sold 40% of its shares in KMGEP, an upstream subsidiary, in an offering split equally between the Almaty and London stock exchanges. KMGEP is the third Kazakh company to list on London’s main market, after last year’s offerings by copper producer Kazakhmys and Kazakhgold (however, the latter two are registered as UK and Dutch companies, respectively). But it raised considerably more money than either of its predecessors and is the only Kazakh-registered company of the three.
