What happened
Uzbekistan's Competition Committee has approved the purchase of mobile operator Perfectum by VEON UZB Holding, the owner of Unitel, which trades as Beeline Uzbekistan, Spot reported on 20 October. VEON had announced on 19 October that it had signed an agreement to buy all the shares in Rubicon Wireless Communication, the company behind Perfectum.
The deal
According to the report, the transaction is valued at about $207 million, including around $93 million of Perfectum debt that the buyer takes on. Beeline will gain 115 MHz of spectrum in the 850 MHz and 3,800 MHz bands, which VEON says will increase its total spectrum holdings by about 50%. The assets also include a 5G Standalone network built with Nokia equipment.
Conditions
The Committee's special commission attached several competition conditions:
- Perfectum must continue as an independent mobile operator for at least three years after completion;
- the 5G Standalone network should be extended to other regions;
- existing 5G fixed wireless access tariffs must be kept for current subscribers for at least 12 months, and average internet speeds must not fall below 300 Mbps;
- subscribers must not be forced onto Beeline or VEON digital platforms, or restricted from switching operators or using competing services;
- subscriber data must be protected, must not be used to restrict competition, and must not be moved to foreign servers in breach of Uzbek law.
Background
In July the Committee approved the sale of a 50% stake in Perfectum to businessman Farhod Mamatjanov, finding no adverse effect on competition.
Why it matters financially
The deal is worth about $207 million including assumed debt and would increase Beeline's spectrum holdings by about 50%. That gives VEON more capacity for 5G and fixed wireless access without waiting for a new auction. The three-year independence requirement and the 12-month tariff freeze will delay some of the cost savings VEON could otherwise get from merging the networks.