SingTel, according a report in The Independent, could be making a run at Cable & Wireless Worldwide (LSE: CWP.L).
Although the report did not reveal any sources, SingTel has talked to Asian and European banks about what it could do with CWW. This new development comes little more than a week after rumors emerged that AT&T could make a bid on CWW as a way to possibly expand its own international reach.
News of a potential marriage with AT&T and now SingTel has boosted CWW's stock standing. Since Cable & Wireless split itself up into two companies--an enterprise unit and Cable & Wireless Communications, which provides consumer services in the Caribbean--CWW's shares have struggled. CWW's stock problems were exacerbated when it revealed in July that the UK government, which consists of 12 percent of CWW's revenue, was making cutbacks.
Regardless of near-term stock issues, one unidentified London-based analyst said that SingTel could leverage CWW's assets to expand their Asian presence. "SingTel has quite a well-developed data business in India and South East Asia, which are areas of focus for C&W. So it would be sensible in terms of the mix," he said in a Reuters article.
Indeed, $3.5 billion of CWW's revenue in 2009 came from its India, Middle East, Africa and South East Asia holdings.
For more:
- Reuters has this article
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