News: BHP Deals of the day-Mergers and acquisitions

May 29 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1000 GMT on Wednesday:

** Anglo American AAL.L rejected BHP Group's (BHP) last-ditch request for more time to discuss a $49 billion takeover offer, dismissing it as highly complex and ending a five-week pursuit by the bigger rival.

** A consortium of U.S. investment firm KKR KKR.N and Singapore Telecommunications (SingTel) STEL.SI has emerged as the frontrunner to buy a minority stake worth $1 billion in one of Asia's biggest data centre providers, two sources said.

** The owner of Britain's Royal Mail has agreed to a 3.57 billion pound ($4.55 billion) takeover by Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, it said on Wednesday, in a take-private deal of one of the world's oldest postal firms.

** ConocoPhillips COP.N is in advanced talks to buy Marathon Oil MRO.N in an all-stock deal that could value the Houston-based company at a little over its $15 billion market value, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday citing people briefed on the matter.

** India's Paytm PAYT.NS is not in talks to sell a stake in itself, while neither billionaire Gautam Adani nor his namesake power-to-ports group are looking to buy shares in the embattled digital payments firm, the companies said on Wednesday.

** Merck & Co MRK.N is nearing a $1.3 billion cash deal to buy ophthalmology biotechnology company Eyebiotech in an agreement that could see an additional $1.7 billion in milestone payments, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

** Cathie Wood's Ark Investment Management had purchased a stake in xAI, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, with a post-money valuation of $24 billion, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

** Private equity firm KKR KKR.N would acquire Canadian energy firm Emera's EMA.TO indirect minority stake in the Labrador Island Link (LIL) clean energy transmission project for C$1.19 billion ($872.24 million), the companies said on Tuesday.

** T-Mobile TMUS.O will buy almost all of regional carrier United States Cellular's USM.N wireless operations including customers, stores and 30% of its spectrum assets in a deal valued at $4.4 billion, the telecom giant said on Tuesday.

** Hess HES.N shareholders on Tuesday approved the proposed $53 billion merger with Chevron CVX.N that paves the way for the No. 2 U.S. oil company to gain a prize asset and a foothold in rival Exxon Mobil's XOM.N massive Guyana discoveries.