Stockholm-listed Millicom has entered into a put and call deal with its equity partner in subsidiary Tigo Guatemala.
Millicom now has an unconditional call option to acquire Miffin Associates Corp’s 45% stake in Guatemala’s largest mobile operator…
Stockholm-listed Millicom has entered into a put and call deal with its equity partner in subsidiary Tigo Guatemala.
Millicom now has an unconditional call option to acquire Miffin Associates Corp’s 45% stake in Guatemala’s largest mobile operator for at least a two-year period.
Meanwhile, Miffin has a put option over the same period which it can exercise if Millicom offloads its 55% stake in Tigo, or if Millicom undergoes a change of control.
Financial terms of the arrangement were not disclosed but a Millicom spokesperson said there was not a preset amount for the options and that the sums would depend on the performance of Tigo.
As part of the agreement, Millicom is fully consolidating Tigo’s accounts; previously the accounts were consolidated proportionality.
Commenting on the deal, Millicom’s CEO Hans-Holger Albrecht said: “Today’s agreement strengthens our partnership with Miffin Associates Corp to the benefit of Tigo Guatemala’s people and its customers. This new structure will enable us and our partner to take Tigo Guatemala to new heights in the years to come.”
A company spokesperson echoed that sentiment and said that the pact was not an attempt for Millicom to take over the business, but rather to shore up the relationship between the two partners.
Millicom struck a similar deal with Celtel, its 33% minority partner in Tigo Honduras, in 2010 for a period of five years. It is yet to exercise the option.
