Telkom and Rain led the bidders in the telecom regulator’s first round of the radio frequency spectrum auction, spending more than R2bn and bringing SA a step closer to dismantling one of the biggest obstacles to a robust growth path.

The Independent Telecommunications Authority of SA (Icasa) said on Tuesday that the auction of the spectrum, the government-controlled airwaves that are licensed to mobile phone companies, raised R2.65bn, with Rain spending R1.15bn and Telkom writing a R1.5bn cheque...