The Canadian government is reported to have been monitoring the possibility of a foreign takeover of Research In Motion (RIM), with a senior minister prepared to discuss foreign investment rules with Thorsten Heins, the BlackBerry-maker’s CEO, according to Reuters.

While RIM has said it is reviewing the strategic options for its business, it has stopped short of explicitly stating that it is up for sale. Rumours and speculation have linked the smartphone maker with Samsung and IBM, although the former has already played this down.

The Reuters report said that while the authorities were prepared to address the issues with RIM if they arose, Heins has not broached the topic – meaning it has not been discussed.

According to reports this week, RIM has recently laid-off a number of staff in Canada, including 25 per cent of its workforce in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Virgin Mobile Latin America has inked a funding agreement with IFC, a member of the World Bank, to support its Chilean operation.

The US$11 million debt facility will provide Virgin with “the capital to speed its entry into the Chilean mobile market”, the MVNO said in a statement.

Virgin is also in talks with IFC “about partnering to enhance the mobile market in a number of Latin American countries including Brazil and Colombia,” the company said in a statement.
Since its launch around four months ago, the Chilean operation has signed 65,000 customers, aiming at the youth market.

Earlier this year, Virgin Mobile Latin America secured US$26.5 million of equity funding to support its growth, from investors including Virgin Group and Hermes Growth Partners, a fund co-founded by former Telefonica head Juan Villalonga.

According to Wireless Intelligence figures, the Chilean market is dominated by Entel (9.8 million subscriptions), Telefonica’s Movistar (9.6 million) and America Movil’s Claro (5.7 million).

Emad Makiya has resigned from his position as CEO of Zain Iraq and will be temporarily replaced by the company’s chairman of the board, Mohammed Charchafchi, the cellco said in a statement.

"Zain Iraq … today confirmed that Emad Makiya will step down as chief executive officer of Zain Iraq with immediate effect," the statement read.

The cellco added that Makiya will continue to advise the chairman and interim CEO, Mohammed Charchafchi.

Emad Makiya became CEO of Zain Iraq in June 2010.

In July, Zain Iraq was slapped with a US$12,864 a day fine from September 2011, for failing to list on the country’s stock exchange, according to a report from Reuters. Zain Iraq’s competitors, Asiacell and Korek, had already received fines of US$8,500 and US$2,500 per day respectively for failing to list their shares on the stock market.

Zain Iraq had 12.8 million customers at the end of the second quarter of 2012, representing 31 per cent of Zain Group’s customer base.

The cellco’s net income rose 16 per cent to US$174.9 million in H112.

Qatar Telecom (Qtel) has been given the go ahead to make a bid to buy the shares in Kuwait-based operator Wataniya Telecom that it does not already own.

The Kuwait Capital Markets Authority has approved the company’s offer document meaning it can proceed with its mandatory tender offer of KWD622.4 million (US$2.2 billion).

The bid equates to KWD2.60 per share, a 22.6 per cent premium on the closing price on June 21, the last trading day before the offer document was first submitted. The offer is for 239.4 million shares and does not take into account any provision for commission, taxes or government charges.

Qtel already controls 52.5 per cent of Wataniya Telecom stock, and on June 21 tabled an offer for the remaining 47.5 per cent.

Virgin Mobile South Africa has announced the appointment of Jonathan Marchbank as the company’s new CEO. He replaces Steve Bailey, who resigned at the beginning of June after confirmation that Dubai-based MVNO Friendi Group and Virgin Group intended to merge their operations in the Middle East and Africa, including Virgin Mobile South Africa.

Marchbank was most recently heading up the Virgin Mobile’s activities in Asia, prior to which he served as the COO for Virgin Mobile USA, a business with over five million mobile customers. Prior to that, Marchbank was the CEO of Virgin Mobile in Australia and Asia.

Marchbank has also served as managing director of Telstra’s mobile business in Australia, having spent the previous 10 years as managing director at Nokia and Philips in Asia and Australia.

Virgin Mobile South Africa has around 400,000 subscribers and is yet to make a profit after six years of operations.