MTN's Nhleko, a soft-spoken dealmaker

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Phuthuma Nhleko, chief executive of South Africa's MTN, is one of the country's best-known black businessmen and may be eyeing the top position if his company ties up with Indian mobile operator Bharti Airtel.
Nhleko, a U.S.-educated civil engineer turned corporate financier and MTN's CEO since 2002, has been instrumental in growing the company into a group with more than 68 million subscribers and operations in 21 African countries and in the Middle East.
A successful deal between MTN and Bharti would create the world's six-largest with more than 130 million subscribers.
Talks between the two companies are, however, at an exploratory stage and a number of other parties interested in sub-Saharan Africa's biggest mobile phone operator have emerged since news of the discussions broke earlier this month.
Emirates Telecommunications said last week that it was evaluating a possible bid for MTN, and China Mobile, the world's biggest mobile carrier, has said it is interested in the South Africa market, but it has not yet bid.
If MTN and Bharti do eventually merge, analysts believe Nhleko would want to run the combined business.
"I am sure Phuthuma wouldn't want to disappear off the scene. I think he is still probably ambitious and wants to be involved and possible want to lead any combined group as CEO," said Rajay Ambekar, a portfolio manager at Cadiz African Harvest.
Media reports and analysts say Bharti may seek a merger or share swap with MTN to avoid a prolonged bidding war for the South African phone firm.
MTN, with a 290 billion rand ($38.36 billion) market capitalisation, operates in countries in east, central and west Africa such as Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, Zambia and Uganda.
Under Nhleko, it has also pushed into Iran, Yemen, Syria and Afghanistan as well as Cyprus. Given its penetration in many difficult markets and hefty market value, analysts believe Nhleko is unlikely to allow MTN to go cheaply.
And if Bharti Airtel or any suitor is prepared to pay a premium to buy a stake in MTN, Nhleko and his top five management team stand to make a bundle.
Nhleko and four other executive directors own 26 percent of Newshelf 664 -- a management and staff-owned vehicle -- which in turn owns 13.09 percent of MTN.
The directors' stake is valued at nearly 10 billion rand ($1.31 billion) and Nhleko's share is worth about 2.9 billion rand.
MEDIA-SHY
Nhleko is an astute dealmaker, and spearheaded MTN's acquisition of Investcom in 2006 -- the 11th biggest M&A deal in South Africa since 1991.
He has been instrumental in transforming MTN from the second-largest mobile group in South Africa into sub-Saharan Africa's top player, while the acquisition of Investcom brought a substantial presence in the Middle East.
Despite all the international growth, however, MTN remains number 2 in its home country, where Vodacom has more subscribers.
Before joining MTN, soft-spoken and media-shy Nhleko was a chief executive of Worldwide Africa Investment -- in which he is still a majority shareholder.
He established Worldwide Africa Investments after a stint in corporate finance at Standard Bank, where he sharpened his dealmaking skills.
Away from deals, Nhleko relaxes by reading and listening to avant garde jazz. He holds an MBA from Atlanta University and a civil engineering degree from Ohio State University.