IRGC Gives Up
Stake In Telecommunications Possibly To Avoid Sanctions
1 hour ago Radio
Farda
Milad telecommunication tower in Tehran, December 16, 2015
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) withdrew as
shareholder from the Iranian Telecommunications Company and a major cell phone
operator company, Hamrah Avval, on Wednesday October 24.
The IRGC announcement annuls a controversial acquisition
during which it had got hold of 50 percent plus one share of the country's
national telecommunications company and its leading cell phone operator in
2009.
That was the biggest transaction to date in the history of
the stock exchange in Iran.
The announcement was made after Iran's Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei last week renewed an order he had issued on January 20
ordering IRGC and other military forces to abandon commercial interests that
were inconsistent with their status as military organizations.
IRGC had ignored the order during the past ten
months.
Most observers on social media welcomed the decision. Some,
such as Iran analyst Reza Haghighatnejad questioned whether it was an
anti-corruption measure or a decision to avoid US sanctions.
Had the two
companies been hit by sanctions, it would have affected Iran's
telecommunications backbone and one of the most important cell phone operators
in the country.
Other observers linked the development to efforts by the
Iranian regime to prove that it is complying with the FATF standards.
In 2009, when IRGC acquired the companies without a tender
bid, the media and critics within the Iranian political circles lashed out at
the populist Ahmadinejad administration. Even then- Vice-President Mohammad Reza
Rahimi criticized the administration for handing over the key companies to
IRGC.
The Iranian Parliament (Majles) also admitted that the
transaction was made under a "non-competitive" and
"stage-managed" situation.
IRGC's supporters argued that the corps needed to control
the telecommunications networks for security reasons. The counter-argument at
the time was that even if IRGC's reasoning was true, it did not need to own the
networks.
What made the acquisition controversial at the time, was
that the company which had submitted the highest bid withdrew its offer without
any explanation minutes before the IRGC stepped in as a prospective buyer
bidding only 3 rials (less than one cent) higher than the best offer.
The IRGC announced on Wednesday that the initiative to end
its ownership of the two companies was based on a decision made by the joint
staff of the Iranian armed forces.
Stock exchange observers in Tehran say that "The
Executive HQ of Imam Khomeini's Order," a body which is part of the
gigantic economic conglomerate that operates under the supervision of
Khamenei's office is likely to buy the shares IRGC is giving away, and to own
the largest number of shares in the telecommunications sector.
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