Russia’s second-largest mobile phone operator, Vimpelcom, said on Friday it had completed a $4.3 billion merger with fixed-line operator Golden Telecom.
Vimpelcom, which offered to buy 100 percent of Golden Telecom (GT) in December last year for $105 per share, said in a statement that GT became its indirect wholly owned subsidiary upon completion of the merger.
Golden Telecom common stock ceased trading on Nasdaq at market close on Feb. 28, Vimpelcom said. Both Vimpelcom and GT had Norwegian group Telenor and Altimo, the investment vehicle of Russia’s Alfa Group, as strategic shareholders.
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Totaltele writes…Telenor (TELN) said Thursday that it filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in New York Wednesday against Alfa Group companies for their multiple violations of U.S. securities laws in connection with their purchase of 9.5% of Russian mobile operator VimpelCom between Aug 2006 and May 2007, including at least two instances of insider trading.
Telenor said the lawsuit is filed against Altimo, Eco Telecom, CTF Holdings, Crown Finance and Rightmarch in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
It said the complaint describes how on two occasions Alexey Reznikovich, Oleg Malis and Mikhail Fridman, the Alfa Group members of VimpelCom’s Board, received advance notice of VimpelCom’s financial results and a proposed dividend, and caused Eco Telecom and the other Alfa Group defendants to purchase VimpelCom ADSs and shares in the open market prior to VimpelCom’s public disclosure of such information.
“Telenor has taken this action to protect the rights and interests of VimpelCom and its shareholders,” said Jan Edvard Thygesen, executive vice president and head of Telenor in Central/Eastern Europe.
Telenor said the complaint alleges that in its purchases of VimpelCom shares and ADSs during the period since Aug 2006, Alfa committed numerous violations of U.S. securities laws, including making false, misleading and incomplete filings with the SEC, failing to comply with U.S. tender offer rules, and engaging in insider trading.
“Those who sold VimpelCom shares during this period were not informed of Alfa’s intentions and, as a consequence, traded on the basis of incomplete information,” Thygesen said.
Telenor said it owns 29.9% of the voting shares in VimpelCom.
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Totaltele writes…Russian telecoms holding Altimo Thursday rejected allegations by Norwegian telecoms operator Telenor ASA (TELN) that it violated U.S. securities laws between August 2006 and May 2007 in relation to the purchase of shares in Russian mobile firm OAO Vimpel Communications (VIP).
Altimo, part of conglomerate Alfa Group, said purchases of VimpelCom shares were made in full compliance with U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission regulations and that all SEC filing requirements had been met.
“It is very disappointing that Telenor seems committed to following its strategy of headline grabbing but fruitless lawsuits against Altimo which cost millions of wasted dollars to Telenor’ shareholders,” said Kirill Babaev, Altimo’s Vice President.
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Russia’s Vimpelcom completes merger with Golden (Russia)
