Leading telco Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT) has pushed back to 26 August the closing date for its acquisition of a 51.55% stake in number three Digital Telecommunications Philippines (Digitel) for PhP74.1bn (US$1.7bn).
This is the second…
Leading telco Philippine Long Distance Telephone (PLDT) has pushed back to 26 August the closing date for its acquisition of a 51.55% stake in number three Digital Telecommunications Philippines (Digitel) for PhP74.1bn (US$1.7bn).
This is the second time since the deal announcement in late March that the deal, which was first expected to close on 30 June, has been delayed because of anti-competition concerns.
In early April, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) reportedly said it wanted to review the transaction, which would create a monopoly since PLDT might end up holding three 3G frequencies.
In a filing with the Philippine Stock Exchange on 1 August, James Go, the chairman of JG Summit, which is selling its stake in Digitel, said: “We eagerly await the decision of the regulators so we can proceed with closing the deal with PLDT.”
PLDT’s chairman Manuel Pangilinan added: “The regulatory process, which started in early April, has taken longer than we anticipated.”