The Canadian mobile operator Wind Mobile has welcomed the merger deal announced between Russian company Vimpelcom and its indirect shareholder Wind Telecom.
Wind Telecom is owned by the Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris. Its subsidiary, Orascom…
The Canadian mobile operator Wind Mobile has welcomed the merger deal announced between Russian company Vimpelcom and its indirect shareholder Wind Telecom.
Wind Telecom is owned by the Egyptian businessman Naguib Sawiris. Its subsidiary, Orascom Telecom, holds a 65% stake in the Canadian communications holding company Globalive. In turn, Globalive owns Wind Mobile.
In an interview with the Canadian newspaper Globe and Mail, Wind Mobile’s chairman said that the deal provided a lot of strength to Orascom.
Anthony Lacavera reportedly said that the merger deal means that his company now has a stronger foreign investor, and that this was good news.
Lacavera also reportedly noted that Vimpelcom had the option to opt out of acquiring Wind Mobile as part of the merger deal, but had chosen to include it in the deal.
The merger between Vimpelcom and Wind Telecom was voted through by a narrow margin by Vimpelcom’s shareholders at a special general meeting yesterday.
Wind Mobile has been embroiled in a complex legal case in Canada over whether ownership complies with Canadian law.
The Canadian Telecommunications Act decrees that carriers must be Canadian-owned and controlled.?Wind is owned by Globalive, in which Orascom Telecom has a majority stake. Anthony Lacavera, a Canadian citizen, holds the remaining 35%.?Both Wind Mobile and the Canadian government are currently appealing against a federal court ruling in February, which judged that an earlier government decision that Wind’s ownership complied with Canadian law was based on legal errors and “must be quashed”.
The case is due to be decided on 18 May.
