The Telegraph up for sale again: Here is who might buy it
The Telegraph, one of Britain’s oldest and most influential newspapers, is back on the block after UAEbacked investment group RedBird IMI officially walked away from its proposed takeover following a political furore.
RedBird IMI on Tuesday said it would sell on the rights to The Telegraph and The Spectator, reigniting a media battle for control of two publications that are famously intertwined with the upper echelons of the Conservative Party.
The Spectator is the world’s oldest weekly magazine still in print while The Daily Telegraph dates back to 1855. The publications came into play last summer when Lloyds Banking Group Plc seized assets of the Barclay family, who owed £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion). The lender kicked off an auction but in December the Barclays repaid the debt with a loan from RedBird IMI—a joint venture between RedBird Capital Partners and UAE deputy prime minister Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s IMI.
Former CNN chief Jeff Zucker planned to take over The Telegraph, but the move was scuppered by Tory politicians who feared there was a threat of a foreign state influencing a British newspaper.
Here are some of the likely bidders.
Jonathan Harmsworth Daily Mail proprietor and chairman Jonathan Harmsworth is thought to be circling. Daily Mail & General Trust Plc bid for The Telegraph in 2004 and has explored approaches in recent years.
Daniel Kretinsky
Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky joined last year’s auction for The Telegraph before RedBird IMI pounced.
Paul Marshall
Hedge fund manager Paul Marshall has written polemics in The Telegraph. The founding partner and chief investment officer of hedge fund Marshall Wace Llp discussed with Citadel founder Ken Griffin the possibility to take over the Telegraph Media Group.
David Montgomery
National World Plc, run by media veteran David Montgomery, has called itself the “best qualified” bidder for the Telegraph after the UK government effectively blocked the RedBird IMI takeover.
Rupert Murdoch
News Corp.’s Rupert Murdoch has coveted The Spectator for decades, and has previously bid for it, Bloomberg reported. If involved, the media tycoon is likely to remain focused solely on The Spectator.
Investment group RedBird IMI has walked away from a proposed takeover following a political furore