Telecom firm Lumen to sell Latin America business for $2.7 billion

(Reuters) -Telecom company Lumen Technologies said on Monday it would sell its Latin American business to private equity firm Stonepeak for $2.7 billion.

The business will operate as an independent, U.S.-headquartered portfolio company of Stonepeak after the deal closes and will be led by Hector Alonso, Lumen's president for the region.

Shares of Monroe, Louisiana-based Lumen rose 2.5% to $12.95 in premarket trading.

AustralianSuper, the country's largest pension fund, is also investing in the deal.

The sale is expected to close in the first half of 2022.

Lumen, which changed its name from CenturyLink Inc last year to refocus its strategy on its fiber optics business, said it would continue to work with the Latin American business to serve joint customers in the region.

(Reporting by Chavi Mehta and Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Aditya Soni)