Naspers Ltd. announced that they are considering selling as much as US$1 billion in debt to fund acquisitions.

The media company, with headquarters in Cape Town, discussed a bond issue of US$500 million to US$1 billion for a seven- to ten-year term with investors.

Naspers is currently expanding its Internet business via acquisitions to take advantage of fast-growing emerging markets.

Naspers began a bond road show on July 8 to see the investor appetite for debt issued by its unit Myriad International Holdings.

Naspers said that they will use the proceeds "for general corporate purposes, including future acquisitions and the repayment of existing credit facilities." They said that they plan to add to its portfolio of overseas assets.

The overseas assets of Naspers include a 34% stake claim in Tencent, which is China's biggest Internet company, and 29 % stakes in the Russian social-media and gaming provider Mail.ru.

 Naspers has enough debt capacity for US$500 million of acquisitions.