Japan-based SoftBank Corp is in final stages of talks with T-Mobile parent company Deutsche Telekom about acquiring the U.S.-based wireless carrier, the Nikkei news service reported on Tuesday, citing anonymous sources. SoftBank, which purchased 80 percent of Sprint earlier this year, wants to pay for T-Mobile using shares of Sprint as early as next spring in a deal worth more than $19 billion, the report said. SoftBank aims to have Sprint buy the majority of T-Mobile shares. SoftBank has thought about a stock swap but now may have added a tender offer and other kinds of deals to its list of options, Nikkei reported. Deutsche Telekom prefers a cash deal, the story said. SoftBank is speaking to banks about borrowing funds for a deal, according to news reports.
