France Tele sells BPL Mobile stake to Essar

European telecom major France Telecom (Orange SA) has sold its 26 per cent stake in BPL Mobile Communications Ltd to the Essar Group and a c...

European telecom major France Telecom (Orange SA) has sold its 26 per cent stake in BPL Mobile Communications Ltd to the Essar Group and a consortium of financial investors — Asian Pacific Systems Ltd — for an undisclosed amount.

While the Essar group has acquired 9.9 per cent of this holding through its telecom arm Essar Teleholdings Ltd (ETHL), the balance 16.1 per cent has been sold to Asian Pacific Systems Ltd.

A BPL Mobile company statement said France Telecom had exited similar investments in Thailand and Indonesia. ETHL has bought the 9.9 per cent stake in BPL Mobile on its own and not through Hutchison Essar Ltd — its proposed merged entity with Hutchison.

The FIPB approval has already come in and it is gathered that this merged entity is planning to go public next year. The deal gains significance in view of Mumbai being BPL’s most important circle for its cellular operations. BPL Mobile provides cellular services in the Mumbai metro circle with a subscriber base of 13.5 lakh. While France Telecom had a 26 per cent stake, BPL Communications owns 74 per cent.

Day after PM Modi’s visit to the town, Manipur’s Churachandpur sees violent protest

India4 hr ago

Protests in Manipur's Churachandpur turned violent as two men were arrested for damaging decorations for PM Modi's visit. The crowd demanded their release and attempted to storm the police station. The men were eventually released after a bail hearing. The incident occurred after a clash between locals and police on Thursday, but the situation had calmed down before Saturday's visit.

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