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Abstract
The initial public offering (IPO) of Iraqi telecommunications company Asiacell on the Iraq Stock Exchange (ISX) was the first since 2003. Market participants agree that it may be a game changer for the frontier exchange. The ISX was incorporated in 2004 following the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. It includes stocks listed on its predecessor, the Baghdad Stock Exchange, which was established under Saddam Hussein in the 1990s. Aside from doubling the value of the exchange, the Asiacell IPO is expected to spur Iraqi private companies to list on the ISX, facilitate foreign investor interest and prompt Parliament to pass a comprehensive securities law. Zaab Sethna, partner at Iraq-focused investment and financial advisory services firm Northern Gulf Partners, said that it was the first of several IPOs to come. "Iraq has a wave of quality modern companies that are driving its high growth rates," he explained. "Now the Iraqi community is aware that there's a legitimate capital market where these new dynamic companies can gain access to both domestic and international capital."