Just under three and a half years after Ryan Reynolds purchased Mint Mobile and became the provider’s public face, deadpool star is set to make a windfall of his investment. T-Mobile has announced an agreement to buy Mint Mobile’s parent company Ka’ena for a whopping $1.35 billion in cash and stock.
The final price will depend on Ka’ena’s performance over a period of time before and after the deal closes, which is expected to happen later this year. Ka’ena also owns Ultra Mobile, a provider focused on international calling, and wholesaler Plum.
According to a 2021 report from Reynolds, he would own between 20 and 25 percent of Mint. The New York Post. He continues in his creative role as spokesperson for Mint. Mint was founded in 2015 and spun off from Ultra at the end of 2019.
Mint, which has been running on T-Mobile since its inception as a mobile virtual network operator, found success thanks to its charismatic pitchman and cost-conscious pricing. T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert confirmed in a YouTube video covering the news that Mint will maintain its $15 per month price.
T-Mobile said in a statement that Mint and Ultra will complement its existing prepaid services. Mint founders David Glickman and Rizwan Kassim will continue to manage the brands, which T-Mobile says will generally operate as a separate business unit. Meanwhile, T-Mobile hopes to take advantage of the marketing news from Mint and its famous co-owner.
“Mint has built an incredibly successful digital direct-to-consumer business that continues to deliver for customers on the Un-carrier’s leading 5G network, and now we’re excited to leverage our scale and owner-operated economics to expand it — and Ultra Mobile — to boost in the future,” Sievert said. “In the long run, we will also benefit from applying the marketing formula that Mint has become famous for to more parts of T-Mobile.”
“Mint Mobile is the best deal in wireless and today’s news only enhances our ability to serve our customers,” said Reynolds. “We are so pleased that T-Mobile defeated an aggressive last-minute bid from my mother Tammy Reynolds, as we believe the excellence of their 5G network will provide a better strategic match than my mother’s slightly above average mahjong skills.
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