In an attempt to whet investors’ appetite and boost offer prices, French conglomerate Vivendi has reportedly set a 5 March deadline for suitors to make a bid for its SFR unit, although it remains unclear how firm that deadline is.
The deadline was…
In an attempt to whet investors’ appetite and boost offer prices, French conglomerate Vivendi has reportedly set a 5 March deadline for suitors to make a bid for its SFR unit, although it remains unclear how firm that deadline is.
The deadline was reported by French newspaper Le Monde citing sources, but TelecomFinance understands that the date is not set in stone. A decision on SFR’s future is expected within the next few weeks.
Following confirmation in late February that Vivendi was approached by Numericable about a tie-up with the mobile operator, it emerged that several other parties are looking at SFR too.
These include number three Bouygues Telecom and latest entrant Free Mobile, but also private equity firm CVC Capital Partners and UK’s Vodafone, according to numerous reports.
Alongside Numericable and its parent Altice, which are said to be working on a US$20bn offer, Bouygues seems the most serious contender so far. Reports suggest that the operator has hired advisers to work on a bid and that its CEO Martin Bouygues met French president Francois Hollande to discuss the implications of a merger, which would reduce the number of players from four to three.
Bouygues and SFR already share networks. The CEO of incumbent Orange, Stephane Richard, previously said that the partnership between its two rivals was akin to a form of consolidation.
TelecomFinance understands that Orange would rather see SFR being bought by Bouygues than by cableco Numericable. It fears that a converged entity would directly compete with Orange but would not be subject to the same regulation as the incumbent.
Just days ago, SFR CEO Jean-Yves Charlier still spoke about IPO preparations for the unit, saying he was hopeful for a stock market debut in early July. But industry experts have long speculated that Vivendi may go down the M&A route instead.
