Bharti to buy major stake in BT from Patrick Drahi

India’s Bharti Enterprises has agreed to buy a 24.5 percent stake in BT from the telecoms firm’s largest shareholder, Altice UK.

Bharti Global, the Indian conglomerate’s international investment arm, has reached an agreement to buy 10 percent of BT’s shares immediately and an additional 14.5 percent stake “upon receipt of appropriate regulatory approvals.”

Bharti told shareholders on Monday that it has no plans to fully acquire the company and that it would support BT’s executive team and strategy, including its plans to roll out 5G technology across the UK.

The company has also not applied for a seat on BT’s board.

Altice, one of France’s largest telecoms groups, first bought a 12 percent stake in BT in July 2021 before increasing it to 18 percent five months later and then to 24.5 percent in the summer of last year.

This sparked speculation that Altice, whose founder and chairman Patrick Drahi owns auction house Sotheby’s, was looking to make a takeover bid for BT.

However, Altice has recently been selling off some assets due to its considerable debt, which stood at £48bn in April.

In early August, the Netherlands-based group agreed to sell its video advertising platform, Teads, to US web recommendation platform Outbrain.

This follows the sale of its French media unit to shipping and logistics business CMA CGM for £1.3bn in March and a 70 per cent stake in its data centre division to a Morgan Stanley infrastructure fund last November for €764m.

BT is also saddled with £19.5bn of debt, while its share price remains below pre-pandemic levels.

Sunil Bharti Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, said his company’s investment in the telecoms giant “demonstrates the confidence we have in BT and the UK.”

He added: “BT has a strong portfolio of market-leading brands, high-quality assets and an experienced management team with a compelling strategy mandated by the BT Board to generate long-term value, which we fully support.”

BT’s relationship with Bharti Enterprises dates back three decades; the Indian company held a 21 per cent stake and two board seats in the telecoms firm’s Airtel subsidiary between 1997 and 2001.

BT Chief Executive Alison Kirkby said: ‘BT has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with Bharti Enterprises and I am pleased that they share our ambition and vision for the future of our business.

“They have a strong track record of success in the industry and I look forward to continuing to work with them positively in the months and years ahead.”

BT Group Shares rose 6.6 per cent to 139.1 pence on Monday morning, making them the biggest gainers in the FTSE 100 index.