MTN Group shares fall on fear of trapped cash in Irancell

MTN’s shares went down by 2.6 percent on Wednesday after earlier falling over three percent following a Trump-led US decision to mete out sanctions against Iran.

The group said on Wednesday that U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of the Iran nuclear accord may limit the South African telecoms firm’s ability to repatriate cash from MTN Irancell, sending its shares lower.

In 2018, the company had repatriated about 88 million euros ($104.26 million) from MTN Irancell, including 61 million euros relating to the 2017 dividend due to MTN as well as a further 27 million euros of historic dividends.

The remaining balance due to MTN is about 200 million euros, MTN said, adding it was committed to its investment in Irancell and to repatriating the balance of legacy cash.

The company said it will continue to monitor the situation, including the response of the Iranian authorities and the other members of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.