A merger between Airtel Kenya and Telkom Kenya could be back on the cards after the country’s High Court overruled objections from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).
The operators abandoned their planned merger in August last year after a lengthy holdup while the EACC conducted an investigation into potential corruption around the deal, and particularly any sale of the assets of Telkom Kenya, which is partially state-owned.
Now, local paper Business Daily reports that the High Court has dismissed the EACC’s queries, clearing the way for a deal to proceed. The commission itself last month reached the conclusion that any Telkom Kenya asset sale would be free of corruption.
While Kenya’s Competition Authority had approved the move, neither it nor the country’s Communications Authority were able to clear a deal without approval from the EACC.
While neither party has yet issued a statement on resuming their merger plans, given that the original roadblock has now been removed, the possibility now exists.
