Kyivstar approved to merge with Cohen Circle, clearing path for IPO

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The planned listing on the Nasdaq would make the operator the first Ukrainian company to be floated on an American stock exchange

This week, the shareholders of US-based special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Cohen Circle Acquisition Corp have approved the merger with Ukrainian telco Kyivstar.

The merger, first agreed in March this year, will see the creation of a $2.2 billion company that is expected to begin trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker ‘KYIV’ as early as Friday.

Kyivstar’s parent company VEON has been looking to list the Ukrainian operator on the Nasdaq since late last year, with the merger with Cohen Circle helping to alleviate some of the most challenging parts of the process.

According to VEON’s CEO Kaan Terzioglu, the listing of Kyivstar – Ukraine’s largest telco and key player in the country’s reconstruction – “will be appealing to international investors”.

“Kyivstar Group’s listing on Nasdaq will be a landmark development, bringing a Ukrainian company with a market-leading position in telecommunications and digital services to the world’s premiere listing venue for technology companies,” said Terzioglu upon filing a registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in June. With today’s filing, we continue to advance towards this historic moment, which we believe presents U.S. and global investors with a compelling opportunity to invest in Ukraine and become a stakeholder in its economic growth and resilience through a robust Ukrainian company.”

He has since called the listing “the people’s IPO”, claiming strong support from US authorities, Ukraine, and the European Union.

Earlier this week, sources speaking to Reuters said that Kyivstar expects to raise between $50 million and $200 million from the initial public offering, with VEON retaining a minimum of 80% of the company’s shares.

Kyivstar has been diversifying considerably in recent years, moving to capture new revenue streams in healthcare, ride-hailing, entertainment, and more. The shift is backed by a $1 billion investment plan, which aims to grow the company’s non-telco revenue to more than 50% of the company’s business by 2030.

In other related news, Kyivstar has this week reported the successful completion of its first direct-to-device testing with satellite giant Starlink. The operator says the successful test is a first for Eastern Europe, with messaging services over the satellite constellation expected to launch commercially later this year.

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