www.WirelessFederation.com/news: $102 million has been raised by Orascom Telecom Bangladesh, a subsidiary of Egypt’s Orascom Telecom, through Bangladesh’s biggest corporate bond deal, thus smashing the previous record of Grameenphone, just after four months. Orascom’s biggest rival in Bangladesh sold shares for $71m in the country’s largest initial public offering.

The deal though small in global terms is still another sign that the country’s capital markets are flickering back into life. Investor’s confidence in Bangladesh is also reflected through the deal. According to Shams Zaman, of Citi Bangladesh, which arranged the deal, investor confidence is coming back and Orascom bond shows that it’s possible to raise sizable amounts of financing from the local market.

Bangladesh is undergoing a heated competition as in January, Bharti Airtel, the Indian telecoms group, bought 70 per cent of Bangladesh’s Warid Telecom for an initial investment of $300m. Grameenphone, Bangladesh’s biggest telecoms company also raised $71m from local retail investors and a further $70m from selling shares to local institutions.