Dr Saad Al Barrak has resigned as the Managing Director and Deputy Chairman of Zain, prompting renewed speculation about the future strategy of the Kuwaiti firm.
In a statement Zain said: “Dr Saad Al Barrak, Managing Director/ Deputy Chairman, Zain Group…
Dr Saad Al Barrak has resigned as the Managing Director and Deputy Chairman of Zain, prompting renewed speculation about the future strategy of the Kuwaiti firm.
In a statement Zain said: “Dr Saad Al Barrak, Managing Director/ Deputy Chairman, Zain Group has submitted his resignation to Mr Asaad Al Banwan, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Zain. The Chairman will convene the Board of Directors at the soonest convenient time to deliberate on this matter.”
Al Barrak appears to have been at odds with shareholders over the company’s strategy for some considerable time and has maintained an aggressive growth strategy and a defensive position on the sale of portfolio assets. The proposed sale of Zain’s African operations was postponed last year, largely down to the highly optimistic sale price that the company was looking to attract, while Al Barrak was keen to keep hold of the assets.
Subsequently, major shareholder the Kharafi Group has embarked on a process to sell up to 46% of the business, although talks with an Indian consortium look unlikely to yield a deal in the short term at least.
Under the leadership of Al Barrak, who has been at the helm since 2002, Zain has embarked on an ambitious expansion strategy with a target of being among the top 10 global mobile operators by 2011, paying high prices for licences and expanding in Africa and the Middle East.
However, the performance of the African assets, acquired from Celtel in 2005, has been disappointing and the difficulties managing and operating a rapidly expanded stable of assets has been problematic.
The focus will now turn to who may replace Al Barrak, with Barrak Al-Sabeeh, the current CEO of Business Developments, already being touted as a possible successor.
