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October 2020 www.intellinews.com I Page 19
be targeted with fines. If that has no effect the bandwidth squeeze will begin.
Amsterdam-based Booking.com has no office
in Turkey but has several across Europe and the Middle East and North Africa region. Booking. com's activities in the country are subject o curtailment as a “precautionary measure” as regards claimed unfair competition. The opening of an office may remove that restriction.
It is expected that the company will agree to pay taxes worth 7.5% of its turnover obtained from its business in Turkey.
Croatian bourse moves Hrvatski Telekom shares to prime market
Croatia's Hrvatski Telekom (HT) announced on October 12 that the Zagreb Stock Exchange (ZSE) had approved its request to transfer its shares from the official market to the most transparent prime market, effective October 14.
The telecom company, controlled by Deutsche Telekom (51.7%), thus joins the other five companies in the ZSE’s prime market: car parts manufacturer AD Plastik, hotel operator Arena Hospitality Group, consumer goods distributor Atlantic Grupa, food company Podravka and tourism operator Valamar Riviera.
To be traded on the prime market, an issue must have a free float of at least 35%, at least 1,000 shareholders and a minimum market capitalisation of HRK500mn (€66mn).
Under ZSE Rules, prior to the start of trading on the prime market, HT will publish the dividend policy of the company.
The dividend policy of the company was set out in the prospectus that accompanied its initial public offering (IPO) in October 2007, namely any dividends declared and paid in respect of any year shall range from 50% to 100% of the company’s distributable profits earned in the immediately preceding year.
In March 2020 HT announced that the management board expects a minimum dividend of HRK6 per share for the financial year 2020.
Russia's Mail.ru could IPO gaming division
Russian internet major Mail.ru Group is considering an initial public offering (IPO) of its gaming division, The Bell wrote on October 11 citing unnamed sources.
As reported by bne IntelliNews, the company has been developing a solid position in video games and cybersports. Most recently, the company reiterated its long-term target of doubling its gaming Ebitda by 2022 and achieving a 20-25% Ebitda margin in the segment.
Reportedly, a potential IPO could be done via actual placement or some deal with a publicly traded company, and could happen as soon as in 2021. The targeted valuation is $2.5bn-3bn, with potential trading in the US.
BCS Global Markets on October 12 commented that the news remains neutral for now. The analysts estimate the value of the gaming unit at $1.7-2.1bn value at current ruble to US dollar rates.
"On [the] one hand, [an] IPO would put a price tag on [the] games unit and likely point to valuation upside of Mail.ru’s other parts; on the other, it may lower liquidity of Mail.ru shares, with some investors migrating to [the] games unit," BCS GM notes.
In 2018 Mail.ru acquired one of the largest cybersports holdings in the world, ESforce, for $100mn. This month the company bought the controlling 51% stake in the game developer Deus Craft for $49mn.
Digitalisation in Slovenia accelerates amid pandemic
Digitalisation in Slovenia was accelerated by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that emerged in March this year, as enterprises had to adapt their