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Media IPO makes a splash at Malaysian bourses
MUMBAI: Malaysian media magnate Ananda Krishnan’s pay TV company, Astro All Asia Networks, has raised $526 million (M$ 2 billion) through its Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange. The issue is said to be 8.16 times oversubscribed.
According to a company statement, the funds so raised are slated to go towards debt repayment. Market analysts have pegged the offer to debut at a 10 per cent premium on 28 October, which is when the shares will be first listed on the Exchange.
According to Malaysian Issuing House (MIH), 111,817 applications had been received against 241.21 million IPO shares for Astro All Asia Networks’ public tranche and 88,139 applications were received for 245.41 million shares from eligible subscribers and retailers. Astro had offered 425 million shares to foreign and Malaysian institutional and selected investors and 83.4 million shares were up for retail investors. The IPO’s retail portion was reportedly fixed at RM3.65 a share and its institutional portion at RM4.06 a share.
As per a Financial Times report, about 60 per cent of the IPO had been offered to foreign institutions, 24 per cent to local funds, and the balance to retail and employees.
Although according to earlier estimates, the issue was deemed oversubscribed by over 15 times, the final figures from MIH reflected market concerns about Astro’s earnings growth potential. The IPO is now being said to be 8.16 times oversubscribed – around half way through initial expectations.
Since Astro is not considered a high-yield stock, investors are more interested in the satellite operator’s earnings growth, which would depend largely on whether the media group can rope in the predominant Malay population. For now, most of Astro’s 1.1 million subscribers comprise the Chinese and Indian communities, which are nearly a quarter of all Malaysian households.
Astro – Malaysia’s sole pay-TV operator – has been offering satellite services for the last seven years and operates 46 pay channels that compete with five free-to-air broadcasters. As per its financial results in the prospectus, Astro had posted a net profit of RM293.11 million for the year till January 2003; but for the first six months till July this year, it made a net loss of RM30.77 million.
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Hyphen launches sunscreen campaign featuring Kriti Sanon as SPF Police
Campaign drives SPF habit; Blinkit tie-up enables instant sunscreen delivery.
MUMBAI: No SPF, no mercy Kriti Sanon is out patrolling your skincare routine. Hyphen has rolled out a new campaign film starring its Co-Founder and Chief Customer Officer Kriti Sanon, who steps into a playful alter ego as the brand’s “SPF Police”, turning sunscreen reminders into a full-blown public service announcement with a wink. The campaign kicked off with a cheeky social media tease suggesting Sanon had “stepped down” from her role, sparking chatter online before the brand revealed the twist: she hasn’t gone anywhere, she has simply taken on an additional avatar, one dedicated to ensuring people do not skip sunscreen.
The film leans into humour to drive home a serious point. In a slice-of-life setting, Sanon intercepts a gym-goer about to step out without sunscreen, promptly handing over Hyphen’s ‘All I Need Sunscreen’, which arrives instantly via Blinkit. The message is clear: forgetting SPF is no longer a valid excuse when it can be delivered in minutes.
Beyond the laughs, the campaign taps into a well-known gap in everyday skincare habits. Sunscreen, despite being one of the most recommended steps, is often the most ignored. By gamifying the reminder through an “SPF Police” persona, Hyphen aims to turn a routine into a reflex.
The multi-stage rollout from intrigue-led teasers to the final film has been designed to spark conversation while embedding the brand into daily behaviour. It also spotlights Hyphen’s quick commerce partnership with Blinkit, positioning accessibility as a key enabler of consistency.
Sanon, who remains closely involved in product development and brand strategy, noted that the idea stemmed from a simple insight: skincare works best when it is easy, habitual and hard to ignore. The campaign reflects that philosophy equal parts science, storytelling and a nudge you cannot quite escape.
The film is now live across Hyphen and Blinkit’s digital platforms, with further activations expected to extend the campaign’s reach and perhaps keep the SPF Police on duty a little longer.
