Telcos

Group revenue falls 1.4% to S$101.3 million, from S$102.8 million

Citigroup is the arranger of the deal and has approached other banks to gauge their interest, sources say

Deliberations are ongoing and may not lead to a transaction, sources say

This follows renewed expectations of a deal between Singapore’s second and third-largest mobile operators

Some operators have retired their older 5G networks, while Simba has yet to announce a timeline for completing the shift to standalone services

Regional experience such as in Thailand suggests that consolidation often leads to more disciplined pricing

Group also mulling Reit IPO to create ‘permanent capital pools’ for longer-term investments; comments come on heels of failed M1-Simba deal

A rollback to a three-player market is inevitable; the tragedy is how difficult the exit has become

The setback is expected to weigh on Keppel, which had planned to monetise M1 through the deal