Shareholders of Singapore operator M1 have approached potential buyers China Mobile and global private equity firms, among others, to sell their combined majority stake in the company, Reuters reports, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter. The three main shareholders in M1, namely Malaysia's Axiata Group, Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), and Keppel Telecommunications & Transportation, own a combined 61 percent stake in the company.
Back in March, the three stakeholders their investments, and appointed Morgan Stanley as their financial adviser for the M1 deal. According to the same sources, the three shareholders had also approached other operators, business groups in China and Japanese tech firms in an attempt to sell their M1 stakes.
First-round bids for M1 are expected in a few weeks, the sources added. Talks between the parties are still at an early stage and there is no certainty the process would succeed, the same sources said.
When asked for comments on the matter, Keppel, SPH and Axiata referred to their joint statement issued in March, while M1 referred the query to its shareholders. China Mobile declined to comment.
