Kuwaiti group may bid for govt stake in Zain

Kuwait's Securities Group said on Sunday it may make a multi-billion
dollar offer for a near 25- per cent stake held by state-owned Kuwait
Investment Authority in telecom giant Zain. 'The Securities Group
announces that it is making the necessary studies to make an offer
to purchase part or all of the KIA stake in Zain telecom whenever the
KIA decides to sell,' the group said in an advertisement in local
press. KIA, the emirate's sovereign wealth fund, owns 24.6 per cent
of Zain, according to disclosures on the Kuwait Stock Exchange
website. The Securities Group, a leading investment firm listed on
the Kuwaiti bourse, said it is ready to offer a price of two dinars
($6.99) per share. Zain was trading at 1.42 dinars ($5) a share on
Sunday. If the deal goes through, it will involve the acquisition
of some 1.05 billion shares worth about 2.1 billion dinars ($7.34b).
Last month, leading investors at Zain signed a preliminary
agreement with an Indian-Malaysian consortium to sell them a 46-per
cent stake in a $14b deal. The consortium consists of Malaysia's
al- Bukhary Group, India's Vavasi Group and state- run Indian firms
Bharat Sanchar Nigam and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam.