SFR parent Altice France inked a deal to acquire MVNO business Afone Participations subject to regulatory approval, a deal which would see the operator take a 50 per cent stake in retailer E Leclerc Group’s mobile brand.

In a statement, Altice France noted as a result of the transaction it would jointly own MVNO RegloMobile, a brand sold exclusively by E Leclerc Group, which owns the other half.

Its new partner runs a chain of hypermarkets and discount stores across France under its core brand name. RegloMobile is focused on the low cost segment and already uses SFR as its host network. It is sold in more than 600 stores.

Full details of the deal, including the financial terms and what else it includes aside from the RegloMobile stake, were not disclosed by Altice. However, the company noted the transaction would add 770,000 direct mobile customers.

As part of the agreement the operator noted it would become a partner of E Leclerc Group and benefit from a distribution deal with the retail giant.

The move comes almost a year after rival Bouygues Telecom announced plans to buy retail MVNO Euro-Information Telecom for an initial €530 million, a deal which eventually cleared regulators in December 2020.