Incumbent Qatar Telecom (Qtel) has offered KD640m (US$2.3bn), or KD2.67 per share, to buy the remaining 47.5% stake it does not already own in Kuwait-based Wataniya Telecom.
This is according to Bloomberg citing a report in local newspaper…
Incumbent Qatar Telecom (Qtel) has offered KD640m (US$2.3bn), or KD2.67 per share, to buy the remaining 47.5% stake it does not already own in Kuwait-based Wataniya Telecom.
This is according to Bloomberg citing a report in local newspaper Al-Rai.
QTel declined to comment on the rumour.
In late June, Qtel had confirmed that it may submit an offer to buy all issued shares of Wataniya, but did not disclose the deal value.
At the time, it had been rumoured that Qtel could buy the stake for US$1.9bn and that it had mandated Barclays Capital and the investment banking division of National Bank of Kuwait to advise on the transaction
The potential deal is aimed at simplifying “the group structure while providing an attractive offer to minority shareholders,” Qtel had said on 26 June.
The Kuwait Capital Market Authority has decided to suspend trading in Wataniya’s shares while it reviews the offer document submitted by Qtel.
Qtel bought its current stake in Wataniya in 2007 for about US$3.7bn.
