On Tuesday, September 19, CNBC reported that T-Mobile US, Inc. (NASDAQ:$TMUS) and Sprint Corporation (NYSE:$S) are currently in active merger talks.
This should not come as a total surprise as Japan’s SoftBank Group Corporation (OTCMKTS:$SFTBF), which owns a major stake in Sprint Corp, and Deutsche Telekom (OTCMKTS:$DTEGF), the parent company of T-Mobile, have had numerous conversations about a stock-for-stock merger, CNBC reported.
So, what do we know about the potential merger? Well, with the all-stock nature contemplated, SoftBank Group Corp would act as a large minority holder in any combination. Further, while John Legere, T-Mobile Chief Executive, is thought to lead any combination that results from a deal, Masayoshi Son, Softbank Chief Executive, has stated that he wants a say in how the combined company is run.
In August, Sprint’s chief executive announced that merger talks should come in the “near future”. However, as of right now, the companies are still weeks away from completing a deal, and CNBC believes the chances of finalizing that deal are not 100% guaranteed.
The two companies engaged in merger talks as recently as 2014, but those fell through.
It is worth mentioning that Sprint shares increased 6.8% Tuesday morning, while T-Mobile shares were up almost 4.6%.
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