OREANDA-NEWS. The Competition Commission of Pakistan (“CCP”) has approved the merger of Pakistan Mobile Communications Limited (“Mobilink”) and Warid Telecom (Private) Limited (“Warid”)*. This approval is the first of four required approvals from the local regulatory bodies, including Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (“PTA”), Securities & Exchange Commission Pakistan (“SECP”) and the State Bank of Pakistan (“SBP”). 

Commenting on the approval, Jean-Yves Charlier, CEO of VimpelCom, said, “We are pleased that the Competition Commission of Pakistan has approved our request to merge the two businesses. The combination of Mobilink and Warid will be a positive step for the development of technology and communications services in Pakistan. Together, the future entity will serve more than 45 million customers through a best-in-class mobile and high-speed network, and bring further investment into infrastructure and digital services for consumers in Pakistan as they navigate the digital world.”

The transaction is the first major merger in the mobile telecommunications sector in Pakistan. 

*Approval is subject to certain remedies by the CCP.

About VimpelCom

VimpelCom (NASDAQ: VIP) is an international communications and technology company driven by a vision to unlock new opportunities for customers as they navigate the digital world. From entrepreneurial beginnings as a startup, VimpelCom has grown into an international technology and communications company providing voice, fixed broadband, data and digital services to more than 200 million customers across 14 markets with the ability to reach more than 10% of the world’s population. VimpelCom’s heritage as a pioneer in technology is the driving force behind a major transformation focused on bringing the digital world to each and every customer. VimpelCom offers services in Russia, Italy, Algeria, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Bangladesh, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Armenia, Georgia, Laos, and Zimbabwe. VimpelCom operates under the “Beeline”, “Kyivstar”, “WIND”, “Mobilink”, “banglalink”, “Telecel”, and “Djezzy” brands.