MTN has signed an agreement to acquire 59% shareholding in i-Talk Cellular.
The mobile operator says it exercised its pre-emptive rights in terms of the existing shareholders' agreement governing i-Talk cellular, and to buy the shares of i-Talk Cellular that are held by the Bebinchand Seevnarayan Trust.
MTN currently holds 41% shareholding in i-Talk Cellular. It did not state the value of the deal.
i-Talk Cellular is an exclusive MTN service provider and has a head office in Durban and regional offices in Johannesburg and Cape Town. It has 11 company-owned stores and a dealer network of nearly 100 outlets nationally.
The proposed acquisition of i-Talk Cellular is the second deal to be announced by MTN this week.
Earlier this week, MTN announced it had entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of Verizon Business SA, a local Internet service provider (ISP).
The acquisition of Verizon Business will bolster the scale and product offering of MTN's existing SA-based ISP, MTN Network Solutions, while also strengthening its regional presence.
"These two acquisitions are in line with our strategic vision and will add value to our business," says MTN SA MD Tim Lowry.
"Through these deals, we are enhancing our value proposition, building capacity and broadening our reach to enhance our product and service offerings to customers and clients. The i-Talk Cellular acquisition will strengthen our distribution across SA," Lowry says.
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