Telekom Austria is concerned that it may be the target of a hostile takeover bid and has asked investment bank Merrill Lynch to help mount its defences, an Austrian newspaper said. Citing unnamed sources, daily Wirtschaftsblatt said Naguib Sawiris, owner of Egypt's Orascom Telecom, was interested in the company and could try to mount a bid via Austrian investor Ronny Pecik. Telekom is worried about a hostile takeover, one source was quoted as saying in the newspaper. Pecik was quoted by Wirtschaftsblatt as denying the report. Telekom Austria could widen its share buyback programme or look for a "white knight" investor to fend off the unwanted advances, the paper said, adding that a contract would be signed with Merrill Lynch in the next few days. Possible white knight investors could include Telefonica, VimpelCom, Telenor or Turkcell. Last month Telekom Austria said it had not been informed of any new investor groups building a stake in the company after a report that a group led by Pecik and including Sawiris aimed to build a share of around 20 percent. CEO Hannes Ametsreiter said the same on 3 October, telling Dow Jones that there has been no notice of share acquisitions. He declined to comment on whether the company had hired an investment bank to help prevent a takeover.
