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Highlights
- Bharti Airtel, a large telecom operator in India, is looking to increase its stake in British Telecom (BT) Group.
- The telecom operator currently owns 24.5% stake in BT Group, and is looking to expand its stake to just under 30%.
- As per a Reuters report, the telco is looking to get its shareholding in BT Group to 29.9%.
Andrew Bonwick
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CEO of Ai+ Smartphone
Varun Kashyap & Sridevi Reddy
Co-Founders, Zithara.ai
Transforming Indian Offline Retail and Customer Engagement Using AI
Bharti Airtel, a large telecom operator in India, is looking to increase its stake in British Telecom (BT) Group. The telecom operator currently owns 24.5% stake in BT Group, and is looking to expand its stake to just under 30%. As per a Reuters report, the telco is looking to get its shareholding in BT Group to 29.9%. This could be a part of the corporate restructuring that Airtel intends to do. Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman of the Bharti Enterprises also recently said that Airtel wants to get more control of its assets and companies to simplify operations.
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Key Highlights
- Bharti Airtel is reportedly planning to increase its stake in BT Group from 24.5% to 29.9%.
- According to reports, Airtel may acquire the additional stake from Altice founder Patrick Drahi.
- The move aligns with Sunil Bharti Mittal’s broader strategy of gaining stronger control over group assets and simplifying operations.
- Airtel’s growing international ambitions are becoming clearer as the company already has a major presence in Africa through Airtel Africa and also owns Eutelsat OneWeb.
- Any increase in stake will likely require approval from the United Kingdom government before the transaction can move forward.
What’s worth noting is that Airtel in 2024 acquired an additional 10% stake in BT Group in 2024. This took the shareholding of Airtel in BT Group to 24.5%. With more stake, potentially reaching close to 30%, Airtel, in the future could acquire further stake in the company for a full takeover. The telecom operator is already a huge presence in Africa with Airtel Africa.
Airtel Moving Towards a Wider Global Presence
This could be a part of move from the company to expand its global presence. Britain is also a huge market, and one where Airtel would definitely want to have a heavy presence. The telco already owns Eutelsat OneWeb, another London based company. Ironically, there was a time when BT owned a 21% stake in Bharti Airtel, between 1997 and 2001.
Bharti Airtel has a global ambition. The telco has not commented anything on the development. It also depends on the United Kingdom (UK) government. If the move is not approved, Airtel will not be able to get the additional stake in BT Group. Reuters report said that Airtel is looking to buy this stake from Altice founder Patrick Drahi.
The telco has already confirmed additional stake move for Airtel Africa. The company’s restructuring will take a few years and then, it will have much better control over its susbidiaries and assets.
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FAQs
How much stake does Airtel currently own in BT Group?
Bharti Airtel currently owns a 24.5% stake in BT Group.
How much additional stake is Airtel planning to acquire?
Airtel is reportedly aiming to increase its shareholding to 29.9%.
Why does Airtel want to increase its stake in BT Group?
The move is believed to be part of Airtel’s broader restructuring and global expansion strategy aimed at gaining stronger operational control over its investments.
Who is Airtel expected to buy the stake from?
Reports suggest the additional stake could be purchased from Patrick Drahi, founder of Altice.
Will Airtel need government approval for this deal?
Yes. Since BT Group is a major telecom company in the UK, regulatory and government approvals may be required before the deal can proceed.
