Zain Saudi says no agreement with Finance Ministry on debt conversion

Mobile Telecommunications Company Saudi Arabia (Zain Saudi) said no settlement was reached with the Ministry of Finance to convert whole or part of the outstanding debts due to the ministry, it said in a statement to Tadawul on Monday.

“The two parties did not reach an agreement, and thus the debts due to the ministry will continue with the same terms and conditions,” the statement said.

In August, Zain Saudi started discussions with the Ministry of Finance to convert whole or part of the outstanding debts due to the ministry, Argaam reported.

The conversion of debt into shares was to take place through partially underwriting of the proposed rights issues or any other means.

In Feb., Zain Saudi’s CEO, Sultan Al Deghaither, told Argaam in an exclusive interview that the company's outstanding debt due to the ministry amounts to around SAR 3.3 billion.