The $8 billion business, controlled by billionaire Mikhail Fridman, is rebranding just after Alfa Telecom completed the purchase of a 13.2 percent stake in Turkey's leading mobile phone company, Turkcell, via a $3.3 billion financing deal.
The Turkcell buy adds to Alfa's asset portfolio, which includes blocking stakes in two of Russia's top three mobile phone companies, VimpelCom and MegaFon, alternative operator Golden Telecom and interests in Ukraine.
"My vision is to be the premier partner of choice for global telecoms companies seeking to venture into new and emerging markets across Eurasia," CEO Alexei Reznikovich said in a pre-launch statement. "We will achieve this by sticking to our ethos of pursuing and creating value: in our investment, for our partners, and in the companies in which we invest."
Industry analysts said the rebranding could mark the start of a push by Altimo to court an international mobile phone major as a strategic buyer.
"The assets of Alfa could only be interesting to a strategic partner who already has industry expertise," said Konstantin Chernyshov, a telecoms analyst at UralSib."I think the rebranding and opening of a new web site is a form of pre-sale preparation," he added.
Company officials declined to comment on whether a trade sale was possible but stressed they wanted to team up with an industry leader.
Altimo's promotional brochure puts its focus on achieving financial performance, not gaining management control. Despite the new look, Altimo will still be entangled in old disputes with its two main business partners.
TeliaSonera, the Nordic telecoms group, has vowed legal action after Alfa dashed its hopes of securing outright control over Turkcell last week. Norway's Telenor, meanwhile, wants to go to arbitration after being outmaneuvered by Alfa in an important Ukrainian deal.
Alfa managed to win the backing of VimpelCom shareholders for the takeover of Ukrainian RadioSystems, a small mobile phone operator. Telenor opposed the deal as it posed a threat to its controlling interest in Ukraine's mobile market No. 2, Kyivstar.
Alfa Telecom's litigious track record might give potential partners pause for thought before they buy into the Altimo story, but analysts said the telecoms holding might also interest a financial buyer once its legal wrangles are resolved.
"The final choice of partner will depend very much on the outcome of the conflicts over Turkcell and VimpelCom's entry into Ukraine -- and how Alfa comes to terms with TeliaSonera and Telenor," said Vladimir Postolovsky at Brunswick UBS.
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