Turkcell Now Out of the Hands of Alfa Group

The Alfa Group of Russia, and its Altimo telecommunications subsidiary have sold a portion of their stake in Turkcell, a leading Turkish mobile network company. The sale is equal to about 62.2% of the company, leaving Alfa’s shares at 4.99%. Two buyers, Henri Services Ltd. and Nadash International Holding, combined to make the purchase valued at USD 90 million. Alfa’s disinvestment of Turkcell was the result of a court order issued by a New York judge, requiring the sale in order to put to rest a conflict of interest dispute between Alfa and the Telenor Group of Norway.

Turkcell (www.turkcell.com.tr)
Turkcell began its operations 1994 as a GSM-based mobile communications provider. In 1998 the Turkish Ministry of Transportation granted the company a twenty-five year GSM lease, and in 2000 Turkcell became the first Turkish company to be listed on the NYSE. As of the close of 2008 Turkcell had a customer base in excess of 37 million subscribers in Turkey alone. The company also listed 12.8 million subscribers in other Eastern and Central European countries and another 3000 in Cypress.

Alfa Group Consortium (www.alfagroup.org)
Founded in 1989, Alfa Group Consortium is one of Russia’s largest privately owned financial industrial conglomerates, with interests in oil and gas, commercial and investment banking, asset management, insurance, retail trade, telecommunications, technology, media, as well as other industrial-trade and special-situation investments.

The Group typically focuses on value-oriented, longer-term opportunities, primarily in Russia and the CIS, but also invests in other markets which form part of the Group’s strategic business objectives.