Medvedev orders Svyazinvest, Rostelecom merger to be completed within twelve months

Outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has this week ordered a merger between state-owned telecoms holding company Svyazinvest and national operator Rostelecom within twelve months, reigniting a plan first mooted in 2009. RIA Novosti reports that the order, which was published on a state legal website, also stipulates that the Russian government and the country's national development bank Vnesheconombank (VEB) will maintain a holding of over 50% to maintain control of the new company, which will function under the existing Rostelecom brand name.*The merger of the two firms represents the second phase of the telco's reorganisation; the first phase, completed in April 2011, saw the national operator stage a so-called ‘mega-regional merger’, which encompassed all seven regional subsidiaries previously controlled by Svyazinvest

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OVETEL Medvedev orders Svyazinvest, Rostelecom merger to be completed within twelve months