Eircom, the Irish fixed line operator, has launched the bookbuilding for its €831m ($1bn) initial public offering (IPO) just after Belgacom, the Belgian telecoms company, said it intends to float this month.

Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are joint bookrunners with Goldman and Morgan Stanley as joint sponsors. Goldman and Morgan Stanley are also bookrunners of the Belgacom IPO which could raise €5.2bn with Lehman Brothers and UBS.