Liberty Latin America (LLA) has received regulatory approval to proceed with its US$200 million acquisition of America Movil unit Claro Panama, a move that forms an entity with over half of the market share in the country.
BNamericas reported, that the next phase of the acquisition will be the fulfilment of certain conditions between both Liberty and America Movil.
The acquisition prompted rival Digicel to exit the Panamanian market by liquidating its local unit, stating that due to the merger of its rivals competition has been stifled.
LLA and America Movil will have a market share of 56% in Panama, reported Reuters.
The acquisition did not look in doubt as LLA cleared an earlier regulatory hurdle with Panama’s Consumer Protection and Competition Authority (Autoridad de Proteccion al Consumidor y Defensa de la Competencia, ACODECO).
Liberty Latin America CEO Balan Nair said in a May earnings call: "With our acquisition, we moved from a four-player market to a three-player market, and that was necessary for Panama," reported BNamericas.