The Super 12 could become the Super 16 after four firms in South Africa expressed an interest in ploughing funds into the cash-strapped Fiji Rugby Union.
Expansion of the southern hemisphere competition already looks inevitable with Australia and South Africa wanting added representation but the latest development has come during a tour to Fiji by South African side Northern Bulls.
A telephone conference organised for later this week between officials from New Zealand and Australia and Rian Oberholzer, the chief executive of the South African Rugby Football Union, will discuss the possibilities in Fiji.
Also on the agenda is a move to synchronise the seasons in the three TR-Nations countries.
The Northern Bulls beat a combined Fiji side 33-19 on Saturday on a tour organised by Willem Strauss and Thinnus Strydom, sports marketing executive based in Pretoria.
Strauss told the Daily Telegraph that $500,000 was on offer: "Buts that's just the start, Fiji needs a commercial structure to keep up with the pace of professional rugby. Unfortunately, money is everything and we're willing to help."