Bahrain-based telecommunications company Batelco Group has announced it has received the ‘Deal of the Year’ award at TMT Finance 2013 Middle East & North Africa Conference & Awards, recently held in Dubai.

The award in the Deal of the Year category is presented for an outstanding telecom transaction, be it a merger, acquisition, IPO, debt funding or private placement, involving a telecom company in or from the Middle East North Region during 2012 to 2013. Deals were evaluated based on their size, impact and market outlook.

Batelco was presented with the award for its acquisition of Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), Monaco and Islands Division, a statement from the company said. It recently completed the acquisition of CWC’s interest in Dhiraagu in the Maldives, Sure in Channel Islands and Isle of Man and CWC’s operations in Falkland Islands, St Helena, Ascension and Diego Garcia (“SADG”).

Batelco also acquired 25 per cent shareholding in Compagnie Monégasque de Communications SAM (CMC), which holds CWC’s 55 per cent interest in Monaco Telecom.

Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, CEO, Batelco Group, said: “TMT Finance is very respected internationally due to its provision of specialist news, research and high-end networking events for senior executives from the telecom and finance industry. We are therefore delighted and proud to be recognised by them for our group’s acquisition of CWC’s M&I division.”

“We are pleased that Batelco Group financial advisers on this acquisition, Houlihan Lokey, Citi and BNP Paribas were also recognised for their support.”

Dominic Lowndes, managing director of TMT Finance, said that Batelco was the natural choice for this year’s award due to the scale and opportunity presented by their CWC acquisition.

“Batelco Group has transformed from being essentially a Middle Eastern regional company to a global enterprise with the scale and diversification of their operations increasing significantly from operating in six geographies to 16.”

The award was accepted by the group’s general counsel Bernadette Baynie and director of mergers & acquisitions Ian Kelly, who represented Batelco on the occasion. – TradeArabia News Service