TELECOMS CONSOLIDATION
France’s Bouygues denies merger talks
Paris — French telecoms and construction group Bouygues has denied fresh speculation that merger talks have resumed between the country’s four telecoms operators. The speculation, which lifted shares of Bouygues, Orange, Iliad, Altice and its French unit SFR Group, was sparked by a report in newsletter La Lettre de l’Expansion of a resumption in negotiations with the aim of cutting the number of operators from four to three. Under that scenario, Bouygues’ telecoms arm would be the target and would be divided up among Orange, Iliad and SFR, La Lettre de l’Expansion said without citing sources. "Bouygues denies any talks with other operators over a possible consolidation of the telecoms sector," a Bouygues spokesman said on Tuesday. SFR, Orange, Iliad and Altice were not available for comment. The French telecoms sector has been awash with merger speculation ever since the round of merger talks between the four French operators failed in April 2016, ending an attempt to ease a price w...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.