Data provider Rain has announced that it plans to pitch a merger between itself and Telkom. This comes after the news that Telkom and cellular giant MTN are in talks of a merger. Rain has indicated that its 5G rollout already services some 5 million households and that this would complement the services provided by stalwart service provider Telkom. It highlights that their partnership could yield considerable profits for the Telkom group, which currently has notable debt.
Telkom currently provides, among others, telephonic, data and fibre services, while Rain is, to date, a provider of data services only. Rain has grown exponentially during the pandemic and, despite initial teething problems, is turning into a trusted service provider. Telkom is a privatized and well-utilized entity but is experiencing somewhat of a lack in profitability. Rain has indicated that this could change in the event of a partnership and thus urges Telkom to partner with itself rather than MTN.