​EFG Hermes Investment Banking announced last week the closing of the USD 7 billion VimpelCom /Wind Telecom transaction Cairo ― EFG Hermes, the leading investment bank in the Arab world, announced last week that its Investment Banking Team has closed its largest M&A transaction to date, advising WIND TELECOM S.p.A. and its shareholders (“Wind Telecom”) in their combination with VimpelCom Ltd. (“VimpelCom”), a transaction with a value that exceeds USD 7 billion (the "Transaction"). This landmark transaction is one of the largest in the global M&A market in 2011 and is a historic milestone in the regional deal making landscape. The Transaction creates the world’s sixth largest mobile telecommunications provider by number of subscribers with operations in 20 countries and total mobile subscriber base of 181 million (pro forma as of December 31, 2010). The global scale, complexity and timing of this transaction is a testament to the quality and standing of our advisory franchise and will further position EFG Hermes as a world class investment banking platform.