After raising about GH¢1.1 billion in the largest ever IPO in Ghana, expectations were high for MTN Ghana’s shares on the stock exchange. This was despite the fact that only 35% of the equity the telecommunication giant was seeking was raised. To make matters worse for those expecting an immediate capital gain, about 90% of the shares sold during the IPO went to institutional investors who were unlikely to trade their shares in the short term.

Nevertheless, the stock performed relatively well in its first week of trading. There was no price change in the week in which it was listed, but it ended the week of September 14 at GH¢0.78 per share, up 4% from its IPO price with over 5 million shares cumulatively traded so far.

What happens next? The uncertainty with MTN Nigeria is of concern to a lot of people at the moment, and a resolution which leaves the company a few billion dollars worse off could dampen the enthusiasm for its sister company in Ghana. Another worry to MTN bulls is that the size of the IPO (3 times larger than the previous largest) does not leave much room for rapid growth in new domestic investors.

On the upside, MTN Ghana is the nation’s largest player in one of the most important sectors of the economy. It has a thriving communications businesses and has made significant inroads into finance with its mobile money service. MTN’s shareholders are betting that the underlying value of such a company will see it through challenges it may face in the short term.