Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris is looking for partners to support a bid for mobile operator Orange Switzerland, reported Bloomberg.
In an interview with the newswire on 29 October, Sawiris is quoted saying that four bidders had been asked to submit…
Egyptian tycoon Naguib Sawiris is looking for partners to support a bid for mobile operator Orange Switzerland, reported Bloomberg.
In an interview with the newswire on 29 October, Sawiris is quoted saying that four bidders had been asked to submit offers by seller France Telecom. However, he reportedly does not plan to bid without partners.
Citing sources, Bloomberg suggests French entrepreneur Xavier Niel, founder of France-based telco Iliad, has partnered with Goldman Sachs to bid, while PE firms including Apax Partners and EQT Partners are also in the running.
Sawiris and Niel could not be reached before the press deadline, and FT declined to comment on the speculation.
Meanwhile, Eric Tveter, CEO of local cableco Cablecom, has told Swiss paper SonntagsZeitung in an interview that his group was “looking at all options” about a possible deal for the company.
A spokesman for Cablecom was unable to elaborate on the comments.
FT plans to sell its Swiss unit by the end of the year for between €1.5bn and €2bn.
The group announced plans to sell the mobile operator on 28 July 2011 as part of a review of European assets. The French incumbent is being advised by Lazard and Perella Weinberg Partners.
In related news, Austrian investor Ronny Pecik has reportedly told Austrian newspaper Die Presse that Sawiris was involved in his move to build a stake in mobile operator Telekom Austria.
Pecik reportedly denied that he was acting on behalf of Sawiris in his dealings with Telekom Austria, but said that the Egyptian tycoon is an investor in his Marathon Zwei Beteiligungs investment firm.
Reports last month had suggested that Sawiris’ Egyptian mobile operator, Orascom Telecom, was using Pecik has a cover while he planned a hostile takeover of Telekom Austria.
The reported rumours of an impending takeover were fuelled further when Telekom Austria revealed that Pecik had acquired options to buy about 5.5% of it.
Orascom Telecom was unable to comment before the press deadline.
