CVC Capital Partners and I Squared Capital are among the bidders shortlisted for a stake in Edotco Group Sdn. The wireless tower business of Malaysian telecommunications group Axiata Group Bhd is being operated by Malaysian telecommunications group Axiata Group Bhd. People familiar with the matter said they were familiar with the matter.
Stonepeak Partners and a consortium led by the Japanese trading house Mitsui Co. were also selected to proceed to the next round of bidding, according to the people who asked not to be identified as the information is private. The people said that the Mitsui-led group includes Japanese telecom operator KDDI Corp. and Jtower Inc.
According to the people, Edotco is looking to raise as much as 750 million in the stake sale. The people said that existing shareholders, including Axiata, may be able to sell down some of their stakes, potentially boosting the total share sale size to more than $1 billion.
The people said that the shortlisted bidders are conducting due diligence after a management presentation. One of the deadlines for binding bids is around mid-May.
The bidders could drop out if the deliberations are ongoing, the people said. Representatives for Axiata, CVC, Edotco and Mitsui didn't respond immediately to requests for comment, while representatives for Stonepeak, Jtower, KDDI and Axiata didn't respond to requests for comment.
Edotco, founded in 2012, operates and manages a portfolio of more than 54,000 towers in nine Asian nations, including Malaysia, Thailand, Pakistan and Myanmar. Axiata is the controlling shareholder of Edotco, while other minority shareholders include the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd. The Innovation Network Corp. of Japan and Malaysian pension fund Kumpulan Wang Persaraan Diperbadankan.
The company's services range from tower leasing and co-location to operations and maintenance. It has expanded organically and through mergers and acquisitions, including the acquisition of around 3,000 towers in the Philippines from PLDT Inc. last year.
With help from Grace Huang, Min Jeong Lee and Takahiko Hyuga.
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