By Yeliz Candemir
ISTANBUL-- Turkcell Iletisim Hizmetleri AS on Thursday held its
first shareholder meeting since 2011, with an imminent threat of
regulatory takeover forcing major stakeholders to cooperate even as
they continue to fight to control Turkey's biggest mobile-phone
operator.
In a statement, Turkcell said it approved the dividend policy
and the distribution of retroactive dividends for fiscal years 2010
through 2014. "The distribution [of dividend] to shareholders [is]
by latest April 6, 2015," the company said.
The general assembly gathering in Istanbul not only marks a step
toward normalization of long-strained ties among three major
shareholders, but also provides investors with a 3.9 billion lira
($1.5 billion) dividend, the first payout since 2011 and equivalent
to 42.5% of Turkcell profits between 2010 and 2014.
After nearly a decade of legal battles and boardroom maneuvers
that crippled decision-making at Turkcell, Cukurova Holding AS of
Turkey, Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman's Alfa Group and Sweden's
TeliaSonera AB struck a rare compromise, providing a boon to
investors but doing little to end their ownership struggle. If they
had failed to convene the general assembly by Tuesday, Turkish
regulators at the Capital Markets Board would have been able to
seize power in the name of all shareholders, with the majority
owners effectively relinquishing their authority and ability to set
the dividend.
Write to Yeliz Candemir at yeliz.candemir@wsj.com
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