Kuwait Telecommunications Company – stc, a world-class digital leader providing innovative services and platforms to customers, enabling the digital transformation in Kuwait, announced that it has been awarded the “Telecommunications Deal of the Year - 2022” for its acquisition of E-Portal Holding Company. The award was presented to Wassim El-Hayek, General Manager of Investor Relations and M&A at stc, during the ‘21st Annual M&A Advisor Awards Gala’ held during the ‘2022 Future of Dealmaking Summit’ in New York on November 15th 2022.
The Annual M&A Advisor Awards Gala is considered the world’s largest awards gala of its kind. The event featured over 350 industry leading professionals who represented over 500 companies. The final award nominees were selected by an independent judging committee comprised of top M&A industry experts.
On this occasion, Eng. Maziad Alharbi, Chief Executive Officer of stc, commented, “This prestigious award reinforces stc’s position in the telecom industry, following the successful completion of its recent ICT acquisition of E-Portal Holding Company and its subsidiaries in April 2022. The acquisition of E-Portal is considered one of stc’s major achievements during the year, which enabled the Company to expand its business model and become one of the top players in the telecom market in terms of revenue market share.”
Alharbi added, “We are proud to be the only finalist from the Middle East amongst the participating companies for the ‘Deal of the Year’ award. This distinctive and prestigious award, which represents the best of the M&A industry in 2021-2022, demonstrates stc’s effectiveness in implementing its growth strategy. The Company’s acquisition appetite has expanded over the years, especially after the fruitful synergies following the acquisition of solutions by stc (QualityNet) in 2019. This served as one of the primary reasons that fueled our determination and keenness to do our ultimate best which translated into acquiring E-Portal.”
Alharbi continued, “To complete the transaction, stc adopted the highest professional standards through its M&A Department within the Finance Sector. The initiative was in line with the Company’s corporate strategy as well as Kuwait’s 2035 vision, and consistent with the BOD’s and Executive Management’s outlook to enrich the customer experience and create value for shareholders. stc’s devotion and perseverance were also reflected through achieving the best results in covering all the financial, technical and legal aspects. This was concluded in cooperation with the best local and international consultancy firms throughout the due diligence process and the following stages stc went through to successfully close this transaction. Accordingly, stc managed to handle the deal stages seamlessly while overcoming challenges encountered by work teams. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who contributed to this success and commend their professionalism in completing this transaction.”
Alharbi concluded, “stc has always been keen on leading with the best international practices and professional standards across all Company sectors and departments, reinforcing its robust corporate strategy, plans and operational activities. Driven by stc’s corporate strategy, which encourages expanding operations into Kuwait’s B2B sector, the acquisition of E-Portal aims to seize potential growth opportunities by introducing innovative concepts and solutions to the market. Furthermore, we have developed an operating model based on the digital platforms of stc Kuwait’s subsidiaries. This in return will enable stc to offer fully integrated products, services, and innovative solutions that aim to exceed its customers’ expectations and needs, in accordance with its digital transformation strategy.”
Source: Press Release