All Blackrock articles
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Financial & PerformanceAltice France clears €8.6bn in debt and opens door to SFR sale
Embattled French group firms up major business restructure seeing founder Patrick Drahi reduce his stake, group of creditors gain a 45%-holding, and former Vodafone CEO Nick Read join Board of Directors as part of a governance rejig.
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Deep DiveLegendary corporate raider reveals 3% Vodafone stake
Deep Dive: Following Liberty Global’s sharp exit, billionaire Martin Ebner has emerged as a prominent shareholder. The investor, known for forcing major change at Swiss firms, is now fourth on the shareholder roster, leaving the market to ponder the activist’s next move.
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PeopleVantage Towers’ third CEO since 2023 — Hillabrant off to Crown Castle
CFO Nicolas Mahler steps up to interim-CEO at Europe’s second-largest TowerCo, amidst significant market pressures and ongoing regulatory scrutiny at Blackrock-KKR-Vodafone venture…
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Strategy & Changestc secures stake (and strategic say) at Telefónica
Saudi operator increases its holding in Spanish operator to just below 10%, following government approval for controversial move in November. Share buy to be accompanied by a Board of Directors seat, confirming stc’s position of influence over Telefónica, alongside Spanish government, as Group changes complexion. Read more…
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M&Astc eyes Spain expansion after Telefónica stake buy approval
Saudi telco gets Spanish government’s blessing to increase Telefónica holding to 9.9%, more than a year after making its entrance as a stakeholder. stc also considering further investment in Spain, and elsewhere in Europe. Read more…
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Analyst BriefingInfrawatch Weekly: EU to invest in quantum, subsea, and 5G; hurricanes accelerate LEO clearance
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK and beyond, including a new data centre for Manchester; Starlink sat‑to‑cell cleared for hurricane relief; EU heralds €865m spending plans, and plenty more…
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M&AGIP said to seek reboot in India after completion of BlackRock mega-buy
Change reportedly already underway at GIP following BlackRock acquisition, as the digital infra investor gauges interest from the likes of Macquarie, KKR, and Stonepeak on a sale of Ascend Telecom stake. Read more…
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Venturing & InvestmentsDTCP gives Irish data centre player a cash injection
Infrastructure investment group invests in Northern Ireland- and Republic of Ireland-focused Atlantic Hub, seeking to expand data centre ambitions beyond initial interest in Germany…
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M&Astc said to be back in Telefónica stake-building mode
Saudi operator reportedly considering increasing Telefónica stake beyond 9.9% should Spanish gov approve September 2023 share purchase.
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Analyst BriefingInfrawatch Weekly: innovation fuelling investment, data centres bringing in cash
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK and beyond, including billions of dollars flood into data centres, race for satellite mobility drives innovation, ongoing UK efforts to make infrastructure-sharing a viable option; people moves, and plenty more…
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M&ACriteriaCaixa makes another Telefónica share buy, reaching 10% target
Spanish investment group ties with the government as operator’s largest shareholder after gradually building up its position over last two years.
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M&ACaixaBank bids farewell to remaining Telefónica stake
Spanish investment group sheds last slice of operator’s share capital, after gradually reducing its position over last three years.
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M&ASpain completes another Telefónica stake purchase, hitting 10% target
Government finishes two-month process of incremental share buy-ups to become the operator’s largest stakeholder. Reports indicate Spain’s CriteriaCaixa also looking to increase stake to 10% to match government’s holding. Read more…
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Analyst BriefingInfrawatch Weekly: interesting infra times in Spain, a SatCo share drop lawsuit, and UK altnets’ ‘moment of peril’
Latest from the digital infra scene in the UK and beyond, including consideration at Connected North of how altnets can balance urgent, and occasionally conflicting, priorities; Cellnex aiming to win as the Spanish mobile sector restructures, and exploring a new TowerCo paradigm in Poland; Phoenix Towers’ European expansion ambitions; legal woes compound setbacks at SpaceMobile; plus plenty more…
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M&ASpain continues Telefónica share buy-up, reaching 6%
Further purchase from SEPI widens government’s lead as telco’s largest stakeholder, and marks continuation of wider plan to shore up national influence in the operator and defend strategic assets from foreign investors. Read more…
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M&APhoenix Tower remains ‘opportunistic’ on buyouts post-BlackRock deal
TowerXchange Meetup Europe: CEO of wireless infra group says it remains “ready to go” on Europe M&A despite many tower rivals looking cowed amid the tighter financing environment. March’s completion of fresh investment by asset management behemoth BlackRock has given confidence to pursue further deal-making opportunities. Claims edge on “carrier captive” rivals. Read more…
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Financial & PerformanceSpain continues to build Telefónica buffer, increasing stake to 5%
Government increases shareholding in the operator by 2%, quickly following up acquisition of a 3% stake in March 2024.
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PeopleVantage Towers brings in CIO to manage ‘Group-wide’ IT refresh
Vantage Towers nabs Tobias Steinig from DEKRA, with newly appointed CIO set to further work on IT standardisation and efficiencies drive at Vodafone tower spinout.
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Analyst BriefingInfrawatch Weekly: 2024 kicking off with TowerCo ownership jostles
TowerCos Vantage, ATC India and IHS seeing ownership action. M&A and satellite segments also off to a busy start in 2024. Cordiant, DTCP, Iridium, Starlink, private network, subsea and more….
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Analyst BriefingVodafonewatch Weekly: Della Valle kickstarts transformation agenda with deals, restructuring
Latest around Vodafone and its ecosystem, including: Vodafone’s Microsoft megadeal; Safaricom’s newest unicorn-scouting initiative; ‘aggressive’ Auto plans; plus Vantage Towers, EU maneuvers, India, North Africa, and New Year exec changes…