Saudi Arabia's Etihad Etisalat (Mobily) will launch a 10 per cent bonus share issue, the telecom operator said in a statement to the kingdom's bourse on Monday.

Mobily, an affiliate of the United Arab Emirates' Etisalat, will give shareholders one new bonus share for every 10 held, subject to regulatory approval. This will raise the number of shares issued to 770 million from 700 million.

Each share has a nominal value of 10 riyals, meaning the company's capital will increase to 7.7 billion riyals from 7 billion riyals currently.

Saudi's No.2 operator will finance the capital increase through its retained earnings, Mobily said, adding it may distribute more bonus shares in the coming years.

Higher revenue from business and data units and rising sales of smart phones helped Mobily report a 23 percent rise in third-quarter net profit in October.

The company's shares were down 0.7 percent on the Saudi bourse. – Reuters