The MTN Group recently announced the successful purchase of a 49 percent stake in IranCell, the private company that has been issued the second GSM licence in Iran.

Earlier this year, the MTN Group acquired a 51 percent interest in Loteny Telecom, operating as Telecel Cote d'Ivoire and a 100 percent interest in Telecel Zambia, now trading as MTN Zambia.

In September 2005, the MTN Group also acquired an indirect equity interest in Botswana's Mascom Wireless.

As of Sept. 30, MTN Group had 20.6 million subscribers across its 10 operations. The additional acquisition of Libertis Telecom brings the total number of operations to 11 spread across the African continent and the Middle East.