Telkom has rejected a bid for a controlling stake in the company by a consortium led by its former group CEO Sipho Maseko.
The consortium, Afrifund Investments, last month presented an unsolicited offer of R46 a share for a controlling stake in South Africa’s third-largest mobile network.
In a statement yesterday, Telkom said: “Shareholders are referred to the Telkom announcement published on SENS on Monday, 12 June 2023 relating to an unsolicited non-binding indicative letter from a consortium consisting of Afrifund Investments, Axian Telecom and the Government Employees Pension Fund, managed by the Public Investment Corporation for the acquisition of a controlling stake in Telkom.
“The Telkom board of directors having considered the indicative proposal, has decided not to continue discussions with the consortium, as the board is of the view that the indicative proposal is not in the best interest of shareholders and that the current Telkom strategy will yield better value for shareholders.
“Accordingly, caution is no longer required to be exercised by shareholders when dealing in their securities.”
Maseko resigned as Telkom group CEO in December 2021 after eight years at the helm. He has since been replaced by Serame Taukobong.
Last year, MTN, Africa’s biggest mobile operator, also made moves to buy Telkom.
However, MTN walked away from the deal after the telephony group failed to provide Africa’s largest mobile operator with assurances around exclusivity.
In January, Telkom and Rain terminated discussions relating to Rain’s proposal to merge with the majority state-owned telephony group.
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