Former Telstra director Geoff Cousins has offered to buy the Australian Virgin Mobile business from owner and operator Optus.
Cousins confirmed he made the bid, along with a consortium, to the Australian Financial Review, but declined to reveal the price tag on offer.
"I can confirm that a group of people have made an offer," he told the AFR. "They are people who know a bit about telecommunications and the Virgin business."
Optus acquired a 74 percent stake in Virgin Mobile in 2006 for $100 million, paying $30 million upfront and agreeing to make ongoing payments. Optus' license lasts for 15 years, and is set to expire on 2021.
An Optus spokesperson told CRN that the telco could not comment on any speculation.
Cousins joined Telstra in 2006 and served on its remuneration and nomination committee board until he left the company in October 2015 to be replaced by Good Technology co-founder Trae Vassallo. He was previously a consultant to former Prime Minister John Howard.
Optus does not disclose financial figures for Virgin Mobile. The telco had 5.4 million subscribers as compared to Optus' 21.8 million subscribers, making it Australia's second largest, according to research from Kantar Worldpanel from June 2016.
Earlier this month, former Optus Wholesale boss James Gully joined Virgin as the new head of the company, working to grow its subscriber base and build brand recognition.
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