Skip to content Skip to Search
Skip navigation

UAE-Czech telecom deal set to close by year end despite EU probe

By Pramod Kumar
Alamy via Reuters
The e& stand at the Mobile World Congress in Spain. The company says it has not recieved state subsidies that would help it undermine competition

UAE telecom company e&, formerly known as Etisalat, expects to close the acquisition of Czech PPF Group’s telecoms business in four countries before year-end, despite confirmation that the European Commission is to investigate the deal.

In August 2023, the telecom company signed a binding agreement with PPF Group to acquire a 50 percent plus 1 share economic stake in both the service and infrastructure companies of PPF Telecom’s assets in Bulgaria, Hungary, Serbia, and Slovakia.

“The European Commission’s decision to open an in-depth investigation is a procedural step, which does not prejudge the outcome of the investigation,” the Abu Dhabi stock exchange-listed company said in a filing on Tuesday.

Person, Electronics, Mobile Phone

Newsletter
Get the Best of AGBI delivered straight to your inbox every week

The telco continues to be in constructive discussions with the European Commission, e& said, adding that it is cooperating towards the conclusion of the foreign subsidies regulation review.

The Emirati company’s consolidated net profit rose to AED2.3 billion ($630 million) in 2023, up 7 percent year on year, as consolidated revenue reached AED14 billion, up 9 percent annually.

Last month, Bloomberg reported that e& ruled out buying out Dutch telecom operator United Group BV, which operates in Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Bulgaria and Greece.

The UAE telco also owns a 14.6 percent stake in London-listed Vodafone.  

Last July e& confirmed it was planning to buy a stake in Ethio, a state-controlled operator in Ethiopia.

Register now: It’s easy and free

AGBI registered members can access even more of our unique analysis and perspective on business and economics in the Middle East.

Why sign uP

  • Exclusive weekly email from our editor-in-chief
  • Personalised weekly emails for your preferred industry sectors
  • Read and download our insight packed white papers
  • Access to our mobile app
  • Prioritised access to live events
Register for free

I’ll register later

Latest articles

Passenger on the Riyadh Metro. The IMF expects consumer prices in Saudi Arabia to rise by 2% this year

IMF cuts Saudi GDP forecast as trade turbulence continues

The International Monetary Fund has lowered its economic growth forecast for Saudi Arabia in response to escalating trade tensions and falling oil prices. The IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook, released this week, predicts that Saudi Arabia’s GDP will grow by 3 percent this year, down from its previous forecast of 3.3 percent. It now expects […]

Lending income underpins record Q1 for Saudi banks

Three of Saudi Arabia’s five biggest banks by assets have reported record first-quarter profits after generating more income from loans and on lower operating costs. Saudi National Bank, the kingdom’s largest lender, reported a 19 percent jump in profit in the three months to March 31 to SAR6 billion ($1.6 billion), compared with the same […]

Oil Terminal Pipes Stop Valve Guest Workers Men In Hard Hats Storage Tank

Iraq to cut oil spending after fall in crude prices

Iraq is seeking to cut operational spending on oil projects while trying to maintain investment in increasing crude production, following a steep fall in prices, the official news agency reported on Tuesday. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani sent a letter to the oil ministry and state-owned oil companies asking them to reduce spending on projects […]

Rail tracks maintenance process. Railroad workers repairing a broken track

Iraq and Turkey to devise roadmap for expanded trade

Iraq and its northern neighbour Turkey will hold a series of meetings in the coming weeks to devise a roadmap for increasing bilateral trade, which hit an all-time high of nearly $15 billion in 2024. “There is a plan in this respect and it has been prepared with the help of various Iraqi economic parties… […]

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are leading a Gulf push to transform their electricity grids into 'smart' networks

Foreign companies cash in as Gulf turns to smart power grids

Saudi Arabia and the UAE are among the Gulf states investing billions to make their electricity grids “smart” using artificial intelligence – and increase their share of generation from solar and wind power. That share is expected to almost double in the Middle East and North Africa over the next five years. It will rise […]

Tourists in AlUla, Saudi Arabia. Visitors to the country will soon be able to claim back VAT on purchases

Saudi Arabia to expand VAT base as oil prices fall

Saudi Arabia has introduced new regulations allowing visitors to the country to claim back value added tax (VAT) to facilitate the tourism industry, but it plans to widen the tax base to include online transactions.  The world’s second largest oil producer is facing a steep decline in international oil prices on which the government relies […]

Morocco World Cup loans: Quartier Habous, Casablanca. A rail project will link the city to Marrakesh

Morocco to borrow for World Cup rail and airport projects

Morocco is planning to seek loans to fund multi-billion dollar rail and airport projects as it prepares to co-host the Fifa World Cup in 2030, according to a minister. The projects include a high speed train network linking the commercial capital of Casablanca on the Atlantic with Marrakesh and a new civilian airport in Casablanca, […]

Construction accounts for almost a quarter of total foreign workers in Oman

Bangladeshis dominate foreign labour in Oman

Nearly 1.8 million foreigners work in Oman and more than a third of them are from Bangladesh, a major source of labour for oil-rich Gulf nations, according to official data. Around 637,000 Bangladeshis work in the sultanate, accounting for nearly 35 percent of the total expatriate labour force, reports the April bulletin of the National […]

Total income at Emirates NBD jumped 11 percent year on year to AED12 billion

Emirates NBD profit slips despite strong loan growth

Net profit at Emirates NBD, Dubai’s biggest bank by assets, fell in the first quarter of 2025 compared to a year ago despite growth in loans and interest income. Tax paid caused the bottom line to decline more than 7 percent to AED6.2 billion ($1.7 billion) for the first three months, from AED6.7 billion a […]

A view of NBK headquarters. Customer deposits grew by 6 percent year on year to KD24 billion by the end of March 2025

National Bank of Kuwait earnings hit by corporate tax

Earnings of the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the Gulf state’s largest financial institution, fell 9 percent year on year in the first quarter following the imposition of 15 percent corporate tax from January. Net profit fell to KD134 million ($435 million) from January to March, compared to KD147 million a year ago, the lender […]

The MoU allows nuclear regulators of China and Saudi Arabia to cooperate in nuclear safety, non-proliferation and emergency response

Saudi Arabia and China to advance nuclear cooperation

Barely a week after a deal on cooperation with the US, Saudi Arabia and China have agreed to work more closely on nuclear energy development, China’s state-run Global Times reported. The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding at a China-Gulf Cooperation Council forum on nuclear technology in Chengdu on Monday. The agreement comes after […]

An LNG carrier. A tariff war with the US has pushed Chinese buyers to resell US-sourced cargoes and secure new supply deals

Adnoc strikes another LNG deal with Chinese energy major

China National Offshore Oil Corporation (Cnooc) has agreed a term deal to buy liquefied natural gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), according to two Chinese trading sources and a state media report. It is the third supply contract Adnoc has signed with Chinese buyers recently, following the deals over the weekend with ENN […]