Sol Trujillo, the former CEO of Australian telco Telstra, is reportedly looking to raise €7.5bn (US$9.6bn) to acquire a stake in Italian incumbent Telecom Italia (TI).
Trujillo, who has not yet approached TI, has discussed the potential bid with…
Sol Trujillo, the former CEO of Australian telco Telstra, is reportedly looking to raise €7.5bn (US$9.6bn) to acquire a stake in Italian incumbent Telecom Italia (TI).
Trujillo, who has not yet approached TI, has discussed the potential bid with financial advisers, according to a Bloomberg report citing people familiar with the matter.
A number of Qatar and Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth funds have reportedly shown interest in the project.
As part of the bid, Trujillo would take over as TI’s CEO, appointing his own management team, the newswire said, mentioning confidential documents.
A €7.5bn offer would represent just under half of the incumbent’s market capitalisation, which currently stands at €17.55bn.
Senior Italian officials have reportedly held confidential meetings over the project since May and the government is rumoured to be “open” to the idea of a foreign investor in TI.
Trujillo started his career at AT&T in 1984. He was later appointed CEO of US West and also headed French incumbent Orange for a year. In 2005, he became CEO of Melbourne-based Telstra.
TI is trying to offload some of its assets to reduce its net debt, which currently amounts to US$35bn.
The company’s management board was scheduled to meet today to discuss the status of the US$960m sale of its Argentine business to investment fund Fintech, but the meeting was postponed to Friday.
TI agreed to sell its 22.7% stake in Telecom Argentina almost a year ago, but the local regulator has not yet decided whether to approve the deal.
Earlier this month, the company reportedly said that the sale, whose deadline has already been extended twice, could not be put off indefinitely and that if Argentina did not approve it by 25 September, TI management would reconsider its plans.
In recent years, TI has attracted interest from a number of overseas investors, including Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing, Egyptian Naguib Sawiris, AT&T and Carlos Slim’s America Movil.
A spokeswoman for TI declined to comment.
