Under the deal, IEC will acquire 24.32 per cent of Bliss-Tel for Bt4.5 per share.

Attavit Ektanitphong, managing director of Bliss-Tel, informed the Stock Exchange of Thailand yesterday that his company's four major shareholders, including himself, agreed to sell 56 million shares to IEC at that price.

Singapore-based Network Management Solutions Pte Ltd is selling 35 million shares, Attavit 8.3 million, Chongkolnee Kemachantree 7.7 million and Prakaidao Kemachantree five million.

Network Management Solutions currently holds 40.56 million shares in Bliss-Tel.

Following the sale, Bliss-Tel's shareholding structure will change.

Network Management Solutions' stake in the company will decline to 2.42 per cent from 17.63 per cent. The Ekatanitphong group's interest will fall to 1.98 per cent from 5.59 per cent, while the Kemachantree group will see its ownership slide to 2.35 per cent from 7.87 per cent.

The holdings of Audiovox Corp and the Hankaivilai group in Bliss-Tel will remain unchanged at 13.04 per cent and 9.96 per cent, respectively.

Sunjutha Witchawut, chief executive of IEC, also told the SET that her company, as part of the transaction, would sell 21 million new shares at a par value of Bt1 to three investors at Bt4.5 a share.

This block of 21 million shares is part of 784 million capital-increase shares approved by the company's shareholders on December 9, 2006

The three buyers of IEC's capital-increase shares, who are all major shareholders of Bliss-Tel, are Attavit, taking 8.3 million shares, Chongkolnee 7.7 million and Prakaidao five million.

Sunjutha said her company would spend Bt252 million to buy 56 million Bliss-Tel shares on August 15. After that IEC will hold 24.35 per cent of Bliss-Tel.

She said the joint ownership would help boost the business potential of IEC.

Both firms are distributors and retailers of mobile phones.

IEC stock dropped sharply on the news, losing 3.61 per cent to close at Bt3.2, while Bliss-Tel rose 0.43 per cent to Bt4.64. Trading in Bliss-Tel stock was suspended during part of the morning session.

Siriporn Chanjindamanee

The Nation