Faced with SFR’s abysmal debt (around 24 billion euros), Altice is desperately looking for solutions to redress the situation. According to information from the Tribune, the operator’s parent company has approached certain competitors, notably Bouygues and Free, to discuss a possible stake.
In recent months, Altice is going through a period of crisis. The telecoms giant was first weakened by the scandal surrounding Patrick Drahi’s right arm: Armando Pereira. In mid-July 2022, the co-founder of the group was arrested in Portugal, justice suspecting him of corruption.
On the financial side, things are not much better with the group’s debt approaching 60 billion euros. SFR is largely responsible for the poor economic health of the company, with a debt estimated at 24 billion euros. For Altice, it is therefore becoming urgent to find money to redress the situation and meet its financial deadlines.
Also read: SFR loses 100,000 subscribers annoyed by price increases, Free rubs its hands
Altice (SFR) seeks support from Bouygues and Free
And as our colleagues from the Tribune report, all solutions are being considered by the group, including a partnership with possible competitors in the sector. Indeed, according to the newspaper, the legal and financial teams of Altice contacted those of Bouygues and Free to discussa possible acquisition of a stake in the capital of SFR.
For the owner of the red square, the idea is first of all to know if such an operation is possible (the question of a full sale of the operator is not yet on the table). In the best of all worlds, Altice hopes to be able to recover no less than 3 billion euros with this operation, enough to meet the initial requirements for repaying SFR’s debt.
Still according to the Tribune, Free was first approached this summer, then Bouygues later. The two operators would not have shown much interest in Altice’s proposal. It must be recognized that the context is not really favorable to telecoms consolidation. This type of project is not appreciated by the European Commission. For the institution, mergers in this sector go against the interests of users, sincethey fatally limit competition.
Source: The Tribune