(Bloomberg) -- Finetwork is considering raising about €500 million ($489 million) to help fund a strategy of growth through dealmaking, people familiar with the matter said. 

The Spanish telecommunications group is working with Nomura Holdings Inc. as it studies options including the sale of an equity stake, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. It’s also exploring the possibility of an initial public offering, they said. 

Madrid-based Finetwork wants to position itself for acquisitions to allow it to better compete with larger rivals, including the soon-to-be-combined Spanish operations of Orange SA and Masmovil Ibercom SA, the people said. 

Finetwork, which started as a regional operator and is seeking to expand nationally, offers mobile and fiber broadband services to more than 800,000 customers, according to its website. It wants to become Spain’s fourth-largest telecom operator and may look to snap up any businesses Orange or Masmovil need to sell to ensure their merger gains antitrust approvals, one of the people said.

Deliberations are in the early stages, and no final decisions have been made on the details of the fundraising, according to the people. Representatives for Finetwork and Nomura declined to comment.

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