Sprint And T-Mobile Surge Following Merger Rumors; Talks Expected To Begin In April

Softbank Group Corp SFTBF, the parent company of telecom provider Sprint Corp S has announced it is willing to cede control in order to make a deal with T-Mobile US Inc TMUS happen.

The deal has been long awaited, and now it appears things are moving in the right direction after Reuters reported Softbank is looking to approach T-Mobile regarding a possible merger. Sources close to the matter are expecting the two parties to begin negotiations in April.

Related Link: Sprint Stock Is Soaring Possible Merger In The Works

The companies are currently blocked from talking to each other until April 1 due to the Federal Communications Commissions' wireless spectrum auction, which concludes on March 30.

“Nobody is talking right now,” said T-Mobile CEO John Legere. “I’ve got news for you. I couldn’t be more excited about the period that’s going to come up when this auction is over.”

Shares of Sprint soared over 4 percent on Friday when the news broke. T-Mobile also spiked nearly 5 percent.

President Donald Trump’s election was a huge catalyst for Sprint, as the stock jumped 12 percent on Election Day on renewed hopes of a potential telecom merger being pushed through with a more business friendly administration. Under former President Barack Obama’s tenure, the deal was blocked citing anti-trust concerns.