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Bharti Enterprises, an India-based conglomerate led by billionaire Sunil Bharti Mittal, has agreed to buy a 24.5 percent stake in BT Group from Patrick Drahi’s Altice.
In a statement on Monday, Bharti said it would immediately buy 10 percent of BT shares from Altice, with the remainder coming “aVsceker receiving acceptable regulatory approvals.”
Bharti said it supported BT’s executive team and strategy and had no plans to make a bid for the entire company. It did not say how much it would pay for the stake. At Friday’s closing price, Altice’s 24.5 percent stake was worth about 3.2 billion pounds.
Altice, an investment conglomerate controlled by billionaire Drahi, first took a stake in BT in 2021, taking a 12 percent stake that it has since increased. BT shares have fallen by about a third since Altice first became a shareholder.
Altice has recently sold assets to pay down debt. In March, it sold a news channel and radio station to shipping magnate Rodolphe Saadé. Last week, Altice partnered with Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund ADQ to inject $1 billion into auction house Sotheby’s.
“This investment demonstrates the confidence we have in BT and the UK,” said Mittal, chairman of Bharti Enterprises. “BT has a strong portfolio of market-leading brands, high-quality assets and an experienced management team with a compelling strategy.”
BT shares rose 7 percent in early trading on Monday.
BT Chief Executive Allison Kirkby said: “We welcome investors who recognise the long-term value of our business and this scale of investment from Bharti Global is a great vote of confidence in the future of BT Group and our strategy.”
Kirkby, who took over in February, said at the time that the company would cut another £3bn in costs and increase its dividend aVsceker BT met its initial savings target early.
Bharti Enterprises will buy its stake through Bharti Global, its international investment arm. The conglomerate also owns Bharti Airtel, a telecom group with operations in India and Africa.
Bharti Airtel emerged as India’s second-largest telecom company following a brutal price war unleashed by billionaire rival Mukesh Ambani in 2016, which undercut most of the country’s operators.
Mumbai-listed shares of Bharti Airtel rose 0.5 percent on Monday and have risen 43 percent since the beginning of the year, outpacing the 10 percent gain in India’s benchmark BSE Sensex.
