Altimo opposes bigger Telenor stake in Vimpelcom

Russian operator Vimpelcom announced that its shareholder Altimo has voiced opposition to Telenor's acquisition of additional shares in Vimpelcom from Weather Investments. Altimo claims that the deal, under Vimpelcom's bylaws, should trigger a mandatory bid for all of Vimpelcom's shares by Telenor. 

The Weather transaction is currently suspended pending the outcome of action brought by Russian competition regulator FAS, which has claimed the deal goes against Russian foreign investment laws. In the meantime, Altimo asked Vimpelcom to investigate the matter and consider "all available options" to ensure any breach of the bylaws is avoided and the rights of minority shareholders are respected. 

Altimo's allegations will be presented to Vimpelcom's Corporate Governance Committee, consisting of the three directors unaffiliated with the major shareholders, and the committee will make recommendations to the supervisory board on what, if any, action the company should take. 

Under the Telenor deal with Weather, the Norwegian operator would become the largest shareholder in Vimpelcom with a 36.4 percent voting stake, Weather's stake would dilute to 18.3 percent and Altimo would have 25 percent. Altimo indicated earlier this year that it was interested in increasing its stake in Vimpelcom.