Golan Telecom interests four investor groups
Four investor groups have shown interest in acquiring the Israeli mobile services provider Golan Telecom, according to a report in Ha'aretz.
The report noted, based on unidentified sources, that the Russian businessperson Roman Abramovich; a group formed between the Israeli businesspeople Shlomo Rodav and Gil Sharon; are two of the investor groups interested in the target.
The report said the bids are all believed to be worth less than ILS 300m (USD 78m), compared with the ILS 1.2bn offer from the Israeli telecommunications company Cellcom.
While none of the bidders are in the telecommunications sector, which would make the Israeli Antitrust Authority less likely to block the deal, Golan said it is planning to contest the regulatory decision to block Cellcom's planned acquisition of Golan instead of entertaining the offers.
Furthermore, among the bidders, Rodav and Sharon are said to be planning to break up the firm, which would make its offer less likely to be accepted by Golan shareholders.
Ha'aretz