Indian smartphone maker Micromax is reportedly interested in buying a stake in South Korean handset maker Pantech. Pantech is under a debt restructuring programme after six quarters of losses, and the company is owned by nine creditor banks, Qualcomm (12%) and Samsung Electronics (10%). Micromax is among the companies interested in buying a stake in the company, the Business Standard writes citing two unnamed sources.
However, the Economic Times, citing an unnamed company executive, wrote that Micromax is not keen on investing in another company. The source did say the company was approached by Pantech.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Pantech's creditors are studying various options to restructure the company's debt, which reaches over USD 1 billion. "Merger and acquisition is being reviewed as a promising way to [revive] the company," one source familiar with the situation said. The source added that there was little interest from other South Korean companies to acquire Pantech. It was not clear if Micromax would acquire a minority stake or a controlling one.
