Page 36 - Sphere No.10 (Dec 2003)

S PHERE
34
T E L E C O M S
B ack in April 1998 it was clear that
newly formed Partner Commu-
nications had a mountain to climb.
Not only was the upstart entrant squar-
ing off against two established mobile tele-
coms incumbents in an already developed
market but the company had precisely six
months to build the management team, hire
all employees, arrange the financing and
complete a nationwide network rollout in
time for the soft launch of services in
October that same year.
The challenge was indeed enormous, but
Partner had several aces up its sleeve. The
consortium combined the heft of a multina-
tional big hitter, the savvy of key local
investors and the dexterity of skilful man-
agement, led by CEOAmikam Cohen.
As Partner’s majority shareholder
(43.27%), Hutchison has been a defining and
critical influence in the company’s develop-
ment, bringing it advantages unavailable to
its competitors.
“We were fortunate to have strong
shareholder backing,” Mr Cohen recalls,
“which enabled us to benefit from global
telecom and local commercial expertise.”
Hutchison was a proven player in the
global telecoms arena and had been active-
ly seeking opportunities to expand. The
company owned a highly successful tele-
coms operation in its home base of Hong
Kong and, most notably, was in the process
of building Orange, the fastest-growing
brand in Europe, which ultimately netted
a jaw-dropping US$14.6 billion profit for
Hutchison when it was sold in 2000.
Fuelled by the enthusiasm of its
local management while leveraging on
Hutchison’s international marketing and
technology expertise, the young company
hit the ground running.
In August 1998, only three months after
receiving the licence, Partner finalised
a long-term credit facility to support its net-
work and business rollout.
By October the initial rollout was com-
pleted, with approximately 77% coverage of
the Israeli population. Full commercial oper-
ations were launched in January 1999, with
88% population coverage and supported by
a nationwide distribution network.
Within 12 months of the launch, the
company had cornered a remarkable 13%
share of the market. The start-up was well
on its way to becoming not only a leading
telecoms business in Israel but one of the
country’s top-ten companies overall.
Listed on three stock exchanges, Partner
enjoys support from investors across
the globe.
Partner completed the largest ever IPO
by an Israeli company when it listed on the
NASDAQ and the London Stock Exchange
in October 1999. A Tel Aviv Stock Market
listing followed in 2000.
The excellent reception was seen as
a vote of confidence in Partner’s potential to
L OCAL DYNAMISM, GLOBAL BACKING
Traded on NASDAQ (PTNR);
LSE (PCCD); TASE (PTNR)
Free
Float
31.77%
Polar
Comm.
Ltd.
2.44%
MATAV
Investments
Ltd.
7.42%
Eurocom
Communications
6.39%
Elbit Ltd.
8.71%
Hutchison
Whampoa Ltd.
43.27%