Japanese telco Softbank swoops on potential Sol Trujillo target

Japan’s third-largest telco, Softbank, has entered into talks over a possible $US19 billion takeover of US mobile carrier Sprint Nextel. Bloomberg reports Softbank is in talks to acquire as much as 75% of Sprint as part of a leveraged takeover that would also provide the US carrier with capital for future investments. In August, SmartCompany […]

Andrew Sadauskas 14 October, 2012

Japan’s third-largest telco, Softbank, has entered into talks over a possible $US19 billion takeover of US mobile carrier Sprint Nextel.

Bloomberg reports Softbank is in talks to acquire as much as 75% of Sprint as part of a leveraged takeover that would also provide the US carrier with capital for future investments.

In August, SmartCompany reported former Telstra boss Sol Trujillo is believed to have sought private equity interest for a potential takeover of Sprint, which is currently the third-largest carrier in the US by marketshare.

Trujillo is also believed to have pitched the idea of a leveraged private equity takeover of Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile USA, the fourth largest mobile carrier in the US, during talks with private equity groups.

Trujillo served as chief executive of Telstra from 2005 to 2009, prior to current CEO David Thodey taking the helm, leaving behind a “mixed legacy”, according to experts.