La Jornada: Telefónica will sell subsidiary in Mexico to Melisa Acquisition

Telefónica Hispanoamérica, a subsidiary owned by Telefónica, reported that yesterday it reached an agreement to sell to Melisa Acquisition all of the shares it owns in Pegaso PCS and Celular de Telefonía, which together make up Telefónica México.

Melisa Acquisition, a consortium led by OXIO Inc and Newfoundland Capital Management, will acquire the shares representing, directly and indirectly, the total capital of both Pegaso PCS and Celular de Telefonía.

“The agreement is part of the sale process of Telefónica México and is subject to compliance with certain conditions agreed upon between buyer and seller. The amount of the transaction for Telefónica México is 450 million US dollars,” the firm said in a statement.

He specified that the amount represents 389 million euros at the current exchange rate, and that the corresponding price will have the usual adjustments.

Likewise, he highlighted that the agreement is subject to the approval of the corresponding regulatory bodies, is part of “the asset portfolio management policy of the Telefónica Group and is aligned with its exit strategy from Latin America.”

Ernesto Piedras, general director of The Competitive Intelligence Unit, a consulting firm specialized in telecommunications, commented that what remained in Telefónica’s client portfolio were consumers who buy airtime through prepaid, which offers lower profitability to companies compared to those who contract in the postpaid modality through a contract.

He highlighted that the service will remain active at least while the purchase by Melisa Acquisition LLC is completed. “We will have to see if it continues operating on the Altán network and if it continues with the Telefónica brand or they decide to give it new commercial visibility.”

Piedras considered that the transaction is part of a “metamorphosis” in the mobile market, where the volume continues to grow along with the expansion of Virtual Mobile Operators.