The board of Italian state-owned broadcaster Rai has unanimously agreed to list a “minority stake” in its network unit Rai Way on Milan’s stock exchange.
It could float a 40%-49% stake by mid-November in a move that would value the tower operator…
The board of Italian state-owned broadcaster Rai has unanimously agreed to list a “minority stake” in its network unit Rai Way on Milan’s stock exchange.
It could float a 40%-49% stake by mid-November in a move that would value the tower operator at nearly €1bn (US$1.3bn), according to local reports.
Credit Suisse, Banca IMI and Mediobanca are acting as global coordinators, reported Reuters citing sources.
Rai, which was unable to comment on the speculation, has been mulling a privatisation for some time as Italy looks to asset sales to reduce its debt.
An attempt by US towerco Crown Castle in 2001 to buy a 49% chunk of Rai Way for US$380m was shot down by the Italian government of the time.
As well as terrestrial and fibre networks, it provides a free satellite platform called tivùsat that uses Eutelsat Hot Bird 9 at 13E.