The Ministry of Finance has given the green light to the merger between Cellcom Israel Ltd. (NYSE:CEL; TASE:CEL) and Golan Telecom. Cellcom's share price is up by more than 5% on the news. In February, Cellcom announced that it would buy Golan Telecom at a valuation of NIS 737 million. The Ministry of Finance Budgets Division stated, "After analyzing the expected consequences of a merger between Cellcom and Golan Telecom, including its effect on competition, on price levels, and on investment in the market, we did not find that the merger raises concerns about damage that would justify objecting to the application being brought before the various government agencies. This is because of the multiplicity and variety of players in the mobile telephony market, alongside the fact that most of the players compete with one another in other areas in which their competitive standing is different. We therefore do not believe that there is any substantial reason to oppose the merger between Cellcom and Golan Telecom." RELATED ARTICLES Cellcom Q1 loss soars 169% Cellcom to keep Golan as independent brand Cellcom signs binding agreement to buy Golan Telecom The Competition Authority has still not approved the merger. Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on June 8, 2020 © Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2020
