Redbird has pulled out of its £500m bid to buy the Daily Telegraph in a move that will plunge the broadsheet into further uncertainty and leaves the paper without a long-term owner for more than two-and-a-half years.
The US private equity giant had been the sole buyer willing to stump up the half a billion-pound valuation demanded by a consortium it had arranged with the Abu Dhabi investment fund IMI.
The joint venture had taken control of the Telegraph Media Group (TMG) in 2023 from Lloyds bank, after the title was seized from former owners the Barclay family in 2023. But that deal was thwarted by ministers in the former Conservative government after concerns were raised about a foreign nation state owning a piece of national infrastructure.
It was forced to put the papers – which then also included the Spectator magazine – up for sale, triggering a closely watched auction process which saw several high-profile bidders emerge and.
But with no suitors willing to match the £500m price tag paid by Redbird IMI, the private equity juggernaut tabled a final bid in which it would be the majority shareholder with the sovereign wealth fund taking a minority stake with less influence.
Relief at the Telegraph
In a statement released on Friday, a spokeswoman for Redbird said it had withdrawn its bid for the paper.
“We remain fully confident that the Telegraph and its world-class team have a bright future ahead of them and we will work hard to help secure a solution which is in the best interests of employees and readers,” she added.
Redbird’s sudden withdrawal follows an aggressive rearguard action against the buyout firm in the Telegraph newsroom, where several of its columnists had published a string of stories claiming to reveal Redbird’s close links to China. Redbird has denied the claims.
City AM understands the extent of discontent among the paper’s editorial staff made Gerry Cardinale, the fund’s billionaire founder, reassess the deal, with someone a source close to him saying it was a “clear signal it was going to be an easy deal”.