★ T-Mobile and Sprint Reportedly Discussing Stock for Stock Merger (Sep 19, 2017)
CNBC reports that T-Mobile and Sprint are in active discussions about a stock-for-stock merger, with Deutsche Telekom likely to end up the majority owner and SoftBank a significant minority shareholder. This has always seemed the likeliest merger to come out of the recent resumption of deal talks after the end the 600MHz spectrum auction and its associated quiet period came to an end, but it’s felt like the sticking point was T-Mobile’s unwillingness to be bought out by Sprint/SoftBank. A stock-for-stock deal with Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile ultimately calling most of the shots is likely a lot more palatable, especially for TMO CEO John Legere, who’s arguably been enormously successful running the company over the last few years and would understandably be reluctant to cede control to the Sprint side. It sounds like the two sides are still some way from a deal, and of course even if it’s finalized it will take months to go through regulatory approvals, a period that would likely see Sprint lower its investment and manage for cash flow and profitability, something that’s likely to lessen competition in the US market even before a deal closes. Following such a deal, the combined entity would at least theoretically be in a much more competitive position given its combined scale, though many of the synergies would take some time to flow through.
via CNBC
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