About Zain
Zain (formerly Mobile Telecommunications Company MTC) was founded in
1983 and today is one of the largest mobile operators in the Middle East and
Africa, with more than 9.5 million customers in Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq,
Lebanon and 13 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.
MTC is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange.
In September 2007, MTC-Vodafone was renamed to Zain.
In September 2002, MTC entered into a Partner Network Agreement
with Vodafone, the world's leading mobile community in Kuwait creating MTC Vodafone
Kuwait. In 2003 MTC continued its expansion with the acquisition of 96.4% of
Fastlink in Jordan.
MTC’s aspirations did not slow down and in 2003 MTC-Vodafone
Bahrain was launched with the first 3G/EDGE nation wide network in the world.
In 2004 the MTC Atheer service was launched in Southern Iraq,
and today covers Baghdad as well.
2004 also witnessed the Government of Lebanon handing over the
management of one of the two mobile networks (Mic2) to the MTC Group, which
is known now as mtc touch.
Most recently in March of 2005 MTC acquired Celtel International,
a Dutch communications network company with major interests in 13 Sub-Saharan
African countries, in one of the biggest telecom deals in the Middle east and
Africa worth $3.36 billion.
The MTC Group now operates in 18 countries. With this
deal MTC group has completed its first phase of its 3X3X3 strategy which entails
becoming a global operator with more than 15 million customers by 2011. MTC
will continue to expand internationally through acquisitions, partnerships and
green-field opportunities.