Following VimpelCom, Sweden’s TeliaSonera has become the second telco today to reveal that it is subject to an investigation in the Netherlands concerning its operations in Uzbekistan. TeliaSonera said in a short statement that two of its Dutch…
Following VimpelCom, Sweden’s TeliaSonera has become the second telco today to reveal that it is subject to an investigation in the Netherlands concerning its operations in Uzbekistan.
TeliaSonera said in a short statement that two of its Dutch holding companies, TeliaSonera UTA Holding and TeliaSonera Uzbek Telekom Holding, are subject to a preliminary investigation concerning bribery and money laundering. These entities holdings include TeliaSonera’s Uzbek operations.
Authorities carried out searches at the holding companies yesterday to access documents, according to the statement. TeliaSonera said it is cooperating fully with the authorities, which it did not name, adding that it has no further details about the investigation at present.
TeliaSonera has already been investigated by Swedish prosecutors over its Uzbek operations, specifically concerning how a 3G licence was obtained in 2007. This prompted major management changes, including the departures of the CEO and CFO. At the company’s request, Norton Rose Fulbright is reviewing partners and the deals that it has made across Eurasia in the past few years.
Earlier today, Russia-focussed telco VimpelCom confirmed that it is under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Dutch authorities over its operations in Uzbekistan.
The US SEC requested documents from the company yesterday, while Dutch authorities, including the public prosecutor office, visited its Amsterdam headquarters, according to a company statement.
Meanwhile, Swiss authorities revealed today that the nation’s federal prosecutor is investigating Gulnara Karimova, daughter of the Uzbek president, in relation to money laundering accusations which may stem from earlier illegal activity in the Uzbek telecoms market. The federal prosecutor’s involvement centres around financial assets in Switzerland related to the accusations and, so far, assets worth more than CHF800m (US$913.6m) have been confiscated, according to a statement.
Separately, Russia’s largest mobile operator MTS has been embroiled in a long dispute with Uzbek authorities in connection with its Uzbek operations, which had its assets confiscated in December last year.
