SoftBank boss Masayoshi Son has returned to discussions on merging Sprint with T-Mobile US, controlled by Deutsche Telekom.
SoftBank has reportedly lined up roughly $65 billion in financing for a potential deal with cable operator Charter, the second largest in the US. That merger would allow Sprint to be able to offer a services such as home broadband and phone planes.
Sprint’s mounting debt maturities put further pressure on Son to find a partner for the company. Sprint has reportedly lost billions since SoftBank brought a majority of the company in 2013 and it has publically stated that a merger would create a large enough wireless carrier to take on the likes of AT&T and Verizon.
The idea of a merger was ruled out by US regulators in 2014 under the Obama administration but with the new Trump administration in place, preliminary discussions began again earlier this year.
Only last week, Sprint recorded a loss of 39,000 customers in the latest quarter, despite its attempts to stem subscriber losses by cutting costs and offering new deals such as unlimited data to new subscribers. The shortfall occurred as Sprint’s rivals added users for the same period.
SoftBank has also been rumoured to have expressed interest in merging with satellite broadcaster Dish Network, causing shares in both companies to spike.
