Shares in Zain slumped by 7.3 per cent today following news that the Kuwaiti telecoms company has rejected all three offers for its interests in Saudi Arabia.
The company said on Saturday that it has rejected offers for its 25 per cent stake in Zain Saudi Arabia made by Kingdom Holding, Bahrain Telecommunications and a consortium led by Al Riyadh Group.
The rejection of the offers could scupper Etisalat's proposed acquisition of a 46 per cent controlling stake in Zain, of which the sale of the Saudi unit was a precondition.
Shares in Zain fell by the most in three weeks on the back of the news.
Three senior executives from Zain Group resigned yesterday, and the group expects four more officials to leave the company, Bloomberg reported.
Zain has received commitments from banks for a $1.2 billion loan, Bloomberg reported. Seven banks are arranging the loan and the transaction will be completed by mid or end of March, according to reports.
bflanagan@thenational.ae
