Dhabi group, the company which has agreed to sell 70 per cent of its stake in Bangladesh's Warid Telecom to Bharti Airtel, today said it would not exit the venture and hoped that all approvals for the deal comes within the next 10 days.
"I don't think so (that Bharti would get to buy the remaining 30 per cent stake)... We are going to stay in the business. We are going to stay as partners", Bashir Ahmad Tahir, chief executive of Dhabi group, said.
He was replying to a query if there is a possibility of Bharti's stake going up to 100 per cent.
Giving details of the deal, Bashir said, "As a first step, we have signed the agreement. This agreement says we are partners in telecom in Bangladesh, they (Bharti Airtel) will be the 70 per cent owner of that company and we will be keeping 30 per cent. They will be operating the company."
Bashir said he hoped that all permissions for the deal would be secured in the next 10 days.
"This is our first step. Hopefully, we will close this with all the permission and everything in a week to 10 days. Then going forward, we will have to see that how we progress in future. What is the business requirement, what is the need for our customers? We have shaken hands with each other to stay together and it is like a Hindu marriage and a long term one."
Bharti Airtel today said it has signed a pact for acquiring 70 per cent in Warid Telecom for an initial investment of $300 million.