Bharti Airtel seals 10.7 bn dollar Zain deal

Amsterdam, Mar 31: Bharti Airtel sealed the massive 10. 7 billion deal to acquire the African assets of Kuwait's Zain to become the world's fifth largest mobile telecom firm.

The announcement of the deal, which is the largest overseas acquisition of assets in Africa by an Indian company, came on Tuesday, Mar 30.

The deal, however, does not cover Zain's assests in Sudan and Morocco.

The deal was inked at the corporate headquarters for Zain's African business in Amsterdam. Chairman Sunil Mittal represented Bharati Airtel while his counterpart Asaad Al Banwan signed for Zain.

"This agreement is a landmark for the global telecom industry and a game changer for Bharti. More importantly, this transaction is a pioneering step towards South South cooperation and strengthening of ties between India and Africa. With this acquisition, Bharti Airtel will be transformed into a truly global telecom company with operations across 18 countries fulfilling our vision of building a world-class multinational," Mittal said.

This is the first time Indian telecom firm has gone ahead and acquired a global major, FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra said in response to the deal.

"This move by the Bharti group will enhance India's brand equity and add a new dimension to the India growth story," he added.

OneIndia News