Orascom rejects Mobinil buyout again

Egyptian carrier Orascom Telecom has rejected yet again an offer from France Telecom to buy out minority shareholders in leading Egyptian mobile operator Mobinil.

The Egyptian regulator recently ruled that France Telecom should make an offer to buy all shares in Mobinil as part of its purchase of Orascom’s stake in ECMS, a holding company that owns 51 per cent of Mobinil.

The deal had been sweetened by France Telecom after its last attempt to carry out this move was scuppered by the Egyptian Capital Market Authority (CMA), which sided with Orascom and said the initial offer was not good enough. No details were given on how France Telecom increased it’s offer, but Orascom released a statement rejecting the deal.

Back in 2007, Orascom initiated a lawsuit against France Telecom seeking to force the French carrier to transfer its Mobinil shares over to Orascom.

However, the court ruled in France Telecom’s favour and required Orascom to transfer its entire stake in Mobinil to France Telecom.