AXA IM in talks to take stake in Telefónica Spanish fibre venture

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favorite tales on this weekly publication.AXA Funding Administration is in superior talks to take a major minority stake in a fibre optic broadband three way partnership between Telefónica and Vodafone Spain, in a deal which might yield tons of of tens of millions of euros for the telecoms firms.The French group — which was lately purchased by BNP Paribas and manages property of €879bn — is in talks to take a stake of round 30 per cent in FiberPass, in response to two individuals accustomed to the talks. FiberPass, which is able to serve over 3.5mn premises, is value round €1.5bn, in response to estimates by New Avenue Analysis. The deal will end in Telefónica, Spain’s largest telecoms supplier by income, retaining a majority stake, whereas Vodafone Spain will assume a smaller place of round 10 per cent, in response to the individuals. The 2 firms final 12 months introduced their intention to discover a minority shareholder for the enterprise.Vodafone Spain was final 12 months offered for €5bn by its father or mother firm to London-listed Zegona Communications, which mentioned final week that talks to discover a third social gathering investor in FiberPass had been “properly superior”. An announcement is more likely to come earlier than the top of September, in response to one of many individuals with data of the talks. Zegona — led by two former Virgin Media executives, Eamonn O’Hare and Robert Samuelson — specialises in shopping for, fixing and promoting struggling telecoms property. Since its acquisition of Vodafone Spain, Zegona has reduce 28 per cent of the Spanish operator’s workers and stripped out prices.O’Hare, Zegona’s chair and chief govt, was paid £131mn for the fifteen months to March 31, one of many largest ever pay packages awarded to a FTSE chief. The payout was pushed by a £129mn payout from a administration incentive scheme after Zegona’s shares rose by 190 per cent over the previous 12 months.Earlier this month Zegona introduced Singapore’s GIC is taking a 25 per cent stake in a separate fibre three way partnership between Vodafone Spain and its competitor MasOrange.James Ratzer, analyst at New Avenue Analysis, mentioned that the deal for FiberPass can be “a very good end result” for each Telefónica and Zegona given “overlapping fibre networks might be much less differentiated in future”. Zegona, Telefónica, Vodafone Spain and AXA declined to remark.