Domestic fixed-line provider Telkom South Africa has issued a market update which has spiked speculations that the company is looking into acquiring smaller South African wireless operator Cell C, local news portal Fin24 reports. In the market update, the operator said it is in ‘discussions which may have a material effect on the price of Telkom’s securities’. The cautionary statement comes hot on the heels of the announcement that Cell C’s parent company Oger Telecom had received six offers for its controlling 75% stake in the South African cellco. As previously reported by TeleGeography’s CommsUpdate, in February 2015 it emerged that Oger was planning to divest its stake in Cell C, though the valuation of the cellco and its current debt were cited as the main issues blocking Oger’s exit from the company. TeleGeography notes that in January 2015 Oger’s parent STC wrote down a ZAR1.2 billion (USD102 million) investment in Oger Telecom, attributing the impairment to its stake in Cell C.
Meanwhile, Cell C’s CEO Jose Dos Santos has revealed that his company might be listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) in the future, TechCentral reports. The executive was cited as saying: ‘It’s certainly something that is on my radar. I think that a legacy I’d like to leave is that we eventually have this company listed and unlock some real value.’