Vodafone now has until March 29 to decide whether to make a formal bid to acquire Cable & Wireless Worldwide (LSE: CW.L).
As reported in Reuters, the UK's Panel for Takeover and Mergers extended the deadline last Friday for Tata Communications (NYSE: TCL), which has also expressed interest in acquiring the service provider.
In mid-February, Vodafone said it was interested in acquiring the troubled service provider. Later, on March 1, India's Tata Communications revealed it was considering a bid for CWW as well.
Nick Brown, an analyst at Espirito Santo Investment Bank, said that the extension is a sign that Vodafone is doing its due diligence before deciding to make a bid or to abandon the effort altogether.
"Their intentions of having a look at the business were made public perhaps before they would have liked, so it makes sense they might want a bit more time because it's not just the Cable & Wireless shareholders they have to convince; they've got to present a robust case to Vodafone shareholders as well," he said in Reuters article.
For more:
- Reuters has this article
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