Attorney General okays sale of Vodafone Ghana to Telecel

After scrutinising documents relating to the transfer of shares in the sale of Vodafone Ghana to Telecel, the Attorney General has given clearance for the transaction.

The Finance Ministry had earlier written to the Attorney General with a request for a review of all relevant transaction documents on the transfer of 70 percent majority shares in Ghana Telecommunications Company Limited (Vodafone Ghana) held by Vodafone International Holdings B.V. to Telecel Group with a view to carrying out due diligence for the transaction and providing legal advice.

Commenting on the details of the transactions after the review the Attorney General indicated that the documents provided met all the conditions per Section 98 of the Companies Act, 2019 (Act 992), Regulations 34 of the Regulations and Articles 14 & 15 of the Shareholders’ Agreement.

In a letter cited by Citi Business News from the office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice to the Minister of Finance on the deal, the AG advised that “the transaction may proceed…”

This development was the final lap to complete the transfer of shares to be approved by the company’s board.

With this concluded, insiders at Vodafone Ghana say the board will likely meet next week to approve the transaction.

Last year, Vodafone Ghana applied to the NCA to transfer 70 percent of its majority shares to Telecel, but this did not pull through after it failed to meet regulatory requirements.

The Authority earlier this year gave clearance but added that it was conditional on both sides making concessions and was issued in response to the assessment of the Telecel Group’s revised proposal.

The statement added, “Following the NCA’s decision, the buyer resubmitted a revised financial and technical proposal in December 2022 which demonstrated the needed capital investment to extend the deployment of 4G and launch innovative Fintech solutions,” the statement read in part.

“The NCA found that the revised proposal provided more clarity and certainty in terms of the funding required for the acquisition and commitments from both the Seller and buyer.

In addition, the buyer has strengthened the overall governance and management team, and made firm commitments toward meeting the regulatory requirements of the NCA,” it further indicated.

Based on this, the NCA determined that the Purchaser’s revised plan now satisfies regulatory requirements.

As a result, it gave conditional approval for the transfer of shares to the buyer, subject to the filing of a staff retention strategy.

But since news broke about the deal, there has been uneasy calm amongst the staff of Vodafone over their job security. Speaking in an exclusive interview with Citi Business News, Managing Partner at Telecel Group, Nicholas Bourg, stated that there was no cause for concern.