On Monday, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) announced via Twitter that Megafon, one of Russia’s leading mobile operators, has officially filed a request to acquire a 50% stake in Euroset, the country’s largest mobile phone retailer.
The terms of the deal have already been defined, the Russian media reported, with oligarch Alexander Mamut yielding his stake to Megafon for an estimated $1.1- $1.4 billion and Vimpelcom, another major operator, acquiring 0.1% of Euroset in addition to its existing 49.9%.
The FAS, however, warned that it will take Megafon’s competitors’ point of view into account before making a decision about the deal.
Euroset controls more than 5,500 retail outlets in Russia and Belorussia. Megafon owns 1,750 outlets in addition to another 2,000 ones in partnership with third parties. The operator plans to open 450 additional stores by the end of the year.
Last July, Megafon and Scartel, the WiMAX provider switching to LTE, formed a holding to assert their leadership on the 4G market. The holding is controlled by Kremlin-connected oligarch Alisher Usmanov.
Source: RIA Novosti / Digit.ru
