MTN Group is in talks to buy Visafone Communications of Nigeria, as it seeks to expand in its largest market, Bloomberg reported citing two people close of the matter.
The sources, seeking anonymity because the deal has yet to be announced, did not give the value of the transaction.
Visafone is a wireless network provider founded in 2007 by Jim Ovia, a Nigerian businessman who also created Zenith Bank.
MTN has been exploring acquisitions as it seeks to boost revenue from data outside South Africa, where Vodacom Group has more subscribers.
MTN had 59.9 million subscribers in Nigeria at the end of 2014, more than a quarter of its 223 million total across 22 countries.
Visafone had about 2.2 million customers as of December, according to data compiled by the Nigerian Communications Commission.
Funmilayo Onajide, a spokeswoman for MTN Nigeria said they will send a holding statement at the appropriate time.
Source: Telecom Paper