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South Africa: MTN Offloads 50 Percent Stake in Cyprus Telecoms Firm
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Business Day (Johannesburg)
20 May 2008
Posted to the web 20 May 2008
Sure Kamhunga
Johannesburg
MTN said yesterday it was selling 50% of its stake in Areeba, which trades as MTN Cyprus, for an undisclosed sum to local investors Amaracos Holding.
MTN said it would sign a separate agreement with Amaracos to continue managing the operations of MTN Cyprus, which has 120000 customers.
Amarocos is owned by Cyprus Trading Corporation, which has a 51% stake, and Germanos Cyprus , another local firm owned by Greek businessman Panos Germanos, which owns 49% .
"MTN Group and Amaracos Holding will enter into a joint venture agreement in terms of which Amaracos will provide MTN Cyprus with insight into the Cypriot market," it said .
MTN Cyprus would acquire 100% of the share capital of Infotel , a local handset retailer trading as Germanos, and 100% of Otenet (Cyprus) , an internet service provider. These would offer the company distribution support and enable it to offer fully converged telecommunication services in Cyprus, where it has a market share of just 16%.
MTN group president and CE Phuthuma Nhleko said the transactions would broaden the ownership of MTN Cyprus and achieve the group's commitment to facilitate local shareholding in the countries in which it operated.
"MTN Cyprus will now have a wider distribution platform and will also be well positioned to provide fully converged telecommunications services."
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By March 31 MTN had more than 68,2 million customers in 21 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
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