Singtel confirmed on Thursday that it is in discussions with multiple parties over a potential stake sale in its Australian subsidiary Optus, though it cautioned that there is no certainty the talks will result in a deal.
Optus, Australia's second-largest telecommunications provider, has been owned by Singtel since 2001. In the financial year ending March 2026, Optus generated about A$8.35 billion (US$5.8 billion) in operating revenue for Singtel, accounting for around half of the Singtel group's total revenue. In the previous financial year, Optus generated A$8.2 billion in revenue.
Optus's operating revenue for Singtel in FY2026, half of the group's total.
The confirmation comes after months of speculation. In May, Singtel said it was open to bringing in an Australian minority partner for Optus. Reuters reported in March 2024 that Singtel was in advanced talks to sell a significant stake in Optus to Brookfield Asset Management, though Singtel denied there was any imminent deal at the time.
Regulatory action over outages
Optus has faced heightened scrutiny since two outages last year involving Australia's emergency call service. The outages affected thousands of users and were linked to four deaths. The incidents led to the departure of two senior executives, including the company's finance chief.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) said on Thursday it had launched Federal Court proceedings against Optus over the outages. The ACMA alleged Optus breached two legal obligations 1,005 times during a mid-September 2025 outage by failing to provide access to the emergency call service and ensure emergency calls were carried to the relevant termination point.
Alleged by the ACMA during a September 2025 Optus outage.
The regulator is seeking penalties of up to A$250,000 per contravention. Singtel did not disclose which parties it is speaking with regarding the stake sale. Singtel and Optus did not immediately respond to requests for comment.