Telkom and Mvela on hold

Telkom’s talks with Mvela put on hold for now

Telkom’s speculative talks to sell its fixed-line assets to black-empowered investment house Mvelaphanda have been scrapped, with the two parties agreeing to postpone discussions until the financial markets are no longer in turmoil.

Mvelaphanda was looking to pay “in excess of R35bn” for Telkom’s assets if the operator divested its 50% stake in cellular network Vodacom.

Last night, Mvela CEO Mark Willcox said the discussions had been shelved mainly because the parties were unable to agree on a sensible price given the crisis in financial markets.

Calling off the talks will not affect the continuing discussions between Telkom and Vodafone, which has bid about R19bn for a 12,5% stake in Vodacom, provided Telkom unbundles the rest of its shares in Vodacom.

Analysts believe a deal with Vodafone is close to conclusion, but they had been less certain about the likelihood of the tie-up with Mvela going ahead.

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