German newspaper group Axel Springer has agreed a deal to buyThe Telegraphfor £575m in cash.
The deal trumps a previousagreement signed in Novemberbetween current owner Redbird IMI and Daily Mail owner DMGT, which hadplanned to pay £400m upfront and a further £100 within two years.
Axel Springer chief executive Mathias Döpfner said The Telegraph has “massive growth potential” and he wants to “help it become the most read and intellectually inspiring center-right media outlet in the English-speaking world”, promising investment.
Scroll down for Döpfner’s full statement
Axel Springer initiallyexpressed an interestin taking part in the auction for The Telegraph in 2023. More recently it was reportedly involved in the preparations for a bid by New York Sun publisher Dovid Efune but has agreed the new deal without his involvement. It thanked Efune “for his essential support and assistance” in a statement.
Axel Springer owns Politico, Business Insider and Axios as well as German newspapers Bild and Die Welt.
The Telegraph acquisition would make Axel Springer a major player in UK media: Politico and Business Insider each have around 100 staff based in the UK and have significant UK audiences.
Axel Springer’s major shareholders are CEO Döpfner, the Springer family and private equity investor KKR.
The publisher tried to buy The Telegraph last time it was up for sale in 2004 but was beaten by the Barclay family – from whom Lloyds Banking Groupseized the news group in June 2023over £1bn they owed in debt.
Döpfner said the new deal means Axel Springer’s “dream comes true”.
Source: Press Gazette
