Telegraph and Spectator put up for sale again
By Abigail Townsend
Date: Tuesday 30 Apr 2024
(Sharecast News) - The Telegraph and The Spectator are to be put up for sale again after Abu Dhabi-backed suitor RedBird IMI walked away, it was confirmed on Tuesday.
In a brief statement, the fund said it was putting the titles up for sale because its ownership was "no longer feasible".
RedBird IMI struck a deal with the Barclay family, the former owners of the titles, last autumn. It spent £600m buying debt secured on the business from Lloyds, which carried with it the right to ownership.
However, the plan was immediately investigated by the Competition and Markets Authority and media regulator Ofcom before being effectively blocked by government, which promised to change the law to stop foreign states taking control of British media groups.
RedBird IMI is US-managed and derives around three-quarters of its funding from Abu Dhabi.
Culture secretary Lucy Frazer said on Tuesday: "Throughout this process I have raised concerns about the potential impact of this deal on free expression and accurate presentation of news.
"I will now allow the parties to conduct an orderly transition and I will monitor the outcome with a view to taking any further regulatory action as required under the Enterprise Act."
Lloyds took control of the titles from the Barclays last year because of unpaid debts totalling around £1.6bn. The family remain shareholders in the titles but have no role in operations.
Interested parties for the latest auction are expected to include Paul Marshall, the hedge fund boss who owns Unherd and holds a sizeable stake in GB News, Daily Mail owner DGMT and regional newspaper group National World.
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