Two private equity groups are reported to have dropped out of the bidding to buy a stake in Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) after disagreements about the price and degree of control the investors would receive over the vendor.

Citing several people close to the situation, the Financial Times reported that there is now just one bidder left that might take a stake in the infrastructure vendor.

According to earlier reports, the parent companies – Nokia and Siemens – are not actively seeking a buyer.

Given that private equity groups, KKR and TPG have dropped out of bidding that leaves just Gores Group and Platinum Equity as a possible investor.

A spokesman said that both Nokia and Siemens are committed to the joint venture until 2013 – which is when the current agreement between the two companies expires.

Failure to sell a stake in the company before 2013 would put the future of the group in jeopardy.

Last July, it was reported that Silver Lake Partners, TPG, Blackstone, Bain Capital and KKR were in talks about taking a one-third stake in the company, which had at the time just agreed to the US$1.2 billion deal to buy Motorola’s networking assets.

Etisalat has stated that it may reconsider bidding for Syria’s third mobile licence, but only if the terms of the tender are amended. The company withdrew from bidding for the concession earlier this year.

“If the terms of the Syrian mobile licence are changed, Etisalat will analyse the new terms,” Etisalat said in a statement to the Abu Dhabi bourse.

Last month, the Syrian government delayed planned auction of the country’s third mobile operator licence due to the ongoing political turmoil in the country.

Only Qtel and STC were left in the bidding round before it was postponed.

Qtel Group announced a number of senior management changes following a board meeting held June 9.

Nasser Marafih, who was CEO of Qtel Qatar, was appointed CEO of the Qtel Group, with responsibility for driving efficiencies and growth across all the group companies.

Marafih began his career at Qtel in 1992 as expert advisor from the University of Qatar, and was seconded to the organisation as strategic planning and development manager in 1994.

Since becoming CEO in 2002, Marafih has led Qtel through its transformation programme and the restructuring of the company in Qatar and across the region. During Qtel’s robust international expansion, he has held the dual roles of Qtel Qatar CEO and Qtel Group CEO – today’s announcement will enable him to focus on the key group responsibilities that will drive long-term growth for the whole business.

Taking on the role of CEO of Qtel Qatar will be Sheikh Saud Bin Nasser Al Thani, who was previously executive director of HR and general services. Al Thani joined Qtel in 1990, and, over the course of 21 years at the company, has gained a wide range of experience and knowledge across the business. In his new role, he will direct operations throughout Qatar.

Al Thani also sits on the Board of Nawras in Oman, which is part of the Qtel Group, in addition to playing a key role on a number of management and audit committees within Qtel Qatar.

Waleed Al Sayed, formerly executive director of customer services, was named as the new chief operating officer of Qtel Qatar. Having joined the company in 1987, Al Sayed has held senior roles across sales, marketing, project management, business solutions, communication and customer services within Qtel.

Nick Dent, formerly COO of Qtel Qatar, will work with Al Sayed on the transfer process, before moving to a new role within the Qtel Group.

Visa Inc., a global leader in payments, announced its acquisition of Fundamo, a leading platform provider of mobile financial services for mobile network operators and financial institutions in developing economies. Visa will pay approximately US$110 million in cash for the company.

It also announced a new, long-term commercial agreement with Monitise PLC, a leading provider of mobile money solutions for financial institutions in more developed geographies.

The investments will accelerate the execution of Visa’s global strategy announced last month to provide the next generation of payments solutions, enabling consumers to transact wherever and whenever they choose, using a card, a computer or a mobile device. The combination of acquiring Fundamo and expanding the relationship with Monitise will enable Visa to deliver best-in-class mobile financial services and payments capabilities to consumers across the full spectrum of uses, geographies and mobile environments from basic services on simple handsets to more advanced services for smart phone owners.

Fundamo’s platform enables the delivery of mobile financial services to unbanked and under-banked consumers around the world – including person-to-person payment, airtime top-up, bill payment and branchless banking services.

The combined Visa Fundamo platform will add enhanced functionality and new services to existing mobile financial services subscribers across Africa, Asia and Latin America for safe, reliable and globally accepted payments solutions.

Privately held, Cape Town, South Africa-based Fundamo has more than 50 active mobile financial services deployments across more than 40 countries, including 27 countries in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. Fundamo’s deployments currently have a base of more than five million registered subscribers and the potential to reach more than 180 million consumers with mobile financial services.

UAE telco Du has signed a new club financing deal for a US$220 million three-year loan facility as part of its ongoing capital optimisation programme.

The loan will be used to both assist in the repayment of an existing loan facility, due for repayment on June 30, 2011, whilst also providing for the continued investment of the company. The remaining balance of the existing facility will be settled using the company’s current resources.

National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Emirates NBD Bank and Samba Financial Group were appointed mandated lead arrangers for the facility, with Mashreq Bank acting as co-arranger. The deal carries a margin of 1.45 per cent per annum over London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR).