Paul Hastings (Europe) LLP and Webber Wentzel advised Link Mobility on its acquisition of SMSPortal.
The transaction, valued at USD 100 million in upfront cash, USD 15 million in Link shares and an earn-out of up to USD 30 million, marks Link’s first major expansion outside Europe and a significant investment into Africa’s growing enterprise messaging market. The deal was signed on 24 June 2025, received unconditional Competition Commission approval on 2 September 2025 and was implemented on Friday, 28 November 2025, following completion of the final ICASA formality earlier in November.
SMSPortal will continue operating independently under its current leadership from its Cape Town headquarters.
Paul Hastings (Europe) LLP advised Link Mobility. The Paul Hastings team included partners Anu Balasubramanian, Jamie Holdoway, Jane Song and Arun Birla, of counsel Chetan Sheth, and associates James Waite, Jee Yoon Chung and Elise Wu.
Webber Wentzel acted as South African legal counsel to Link Mobility Group AS on the transaction.
This matter was led by Safiyya Patel, with support from Leigh Lambrechts, Kayla Dodo, Victoria Nonyamezelo Phungula, Kutlwano Phaahla and Khanya Thwala (Corporate), Wendy Tembedza (Data Protection and Information Technology), and Burton Phillips, Clare-Alice Vertue and Lebohang Noko (née Makhubedu) (Competition).
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