MTN could not have bought out Zain.. They compete in many of the 15 markets that Zain Africa operates in. A merger, maybe, a buy-out - no way.
Don't prepare for low rates. They may happen, but i will be surprised if they go below 6 bob. It has to be commercially viable. They are falking out $10.6bn for operations that are slowly losing cash, the focus will be on profitability.
Last years results from Zain's africas operations declined sharply compared to 2008. download them here -
http://www.zain.com/muse...rts/Earning%20Releases.
I think $10.6bn is a huge premium. Add a 4.6bn debt, and u get the picture.
There has been so many top changes in Zain that a change in ownership is imminent.