Vodacom, Neotel deal hangs in the balance as hearings postponed indefinitely

Telecommunications giant Vodacom and converged network operator Neotel have two weeks to decide whether the proposed merger between the two companies would continue in an “amended” form or be abandoned altogether. Following an eleventh-hour postponement of the Competition Tribunal hearings for the drawn-out R7-billion deal, Vodacom and Neotel unpacked a revised transaction structure to all involved stakeholders at a closed prehearing on Monday.