ANKARA
The Alfa Group, which has made a bid for a controlling stake in Turkcell, issued a statement on Wednesday.
The statement addressed the proposal, by Turkcell shareholders, to receive a dividend calculated at 4 billion Turkish liras for the period of 2010 to the present, which the shareholders will make at the next general meeting on March 26.
Alfa Group: The demand by TeliaSonera and other shareholders in Turkcell for dividend payments is far from settling the matter, as it was just a small positive step, the statement said.
“This dividend request is a small first positive step to the improvement of matters at Turkcell but it does not resolve the deadlock. Our hope is that through our offer to purchase shares, this can be resolved quickly and that foreign investors in Turkish companies will be welcomed by Turkish government,” the statement said.
On March 17, Alfa Telecom Turkey, the Turkish subsidiary of Russia's Alfa Telecom, offered a $2.8 billion bid to buy a controlling 13.76 percent stake in Turkcell.
Turkcell had not paid a dividend since 2010 due to power struggle for the management of the company between largest shareholders TeliaSonera, Russian ALFA group and other shareholders.
The amount accrued is close to 4 billion lira and it corresponds to around 42.5 percent of the net profit accumulated during the period.
In late afternoon Kaan Terzioglu was appointed as a new Chief Executive Officer for the Turkcell according to filing released on the Public Disclosure Platform of Borsa Istanbul.
