Saudi regulator halts trading on shares of listed telcos

The Capital Market Authority (CMA), Saudi Arabia’s market regulator, has placed a trading halt on shares of Etihad Etisalat Co. (Mobily), Mobile Telecommunication Company Saudi Arabia (Zain Saudi), Etihad Atheeb Telecommunication Co., and Saudi Telecom Co. (STC) starting October 2.

The decision came in light of a royal decree that was issued on Saturday, directing the Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) to discuss with Zain Saudi the extension of its license for 15 years and allow other players to apply for an extension, the CMA added in a statement to Tadawul.

Meanwhile, the government will in return have a 5 percent share in applicants’ annual net profit throughout the extended period.

In addition, the telecom sector regulator will coordinate with Zain Saudi the issuance of a unified license for the telco to provide all telecommunication services and allow local peers to obtain the same unified license.

The shares will remain suspended until the companies discloses the financial impact related to license extensions and the issuance of unified licenses, the statement added.