MTN Group did not make it to the
final five companies in the bid for 9mobile.
The top five bidders who made it
to the next stage of the bid are Airtel, Globacom, Smile, Helios, and Teleology
Holdings Limited. Out of the five, one will be the eventual buyer in a matter
of weeks.
In a memo, Boye
Onasanya, CEO 9mobile, said it will have more extensive discussions with the
shortlisted parties, as the company gets closer to its final bidder.
“We are now moving on to the next
phase, with plans for more extensive discusssions and interaction with
shortlisted parties, one of whom will emerge as final bidder in the coming
weeks,” Onasanya said.
Earlier 16 companies tendered
expressions of interest (EoIs) to Barclays, 9mobile’s financial advisor.
The companies included five
telcos: MTN, Airtel, Ntel, Virgin Mobile from the United Kingdom and Vodacom of
South Africa.
Some others are BUA Group,
Morning Side Capital Partners, Obot Etiebet & Co, Blackstone Private
Equity, and Hamilton and George International Limited.
In July, Etisalat Group informed
the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange that it had pulled out of 9mobile, formerly known
as Etisalat Nigeria, as a result of controversies surrouding the repayment of a
$1.2 billion loan taken by the bank.
Culled: The Cable
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