Abu Dhabi-backed fund says it will take over Telegraph and Spectator
The Guardian|November 21, 2023
An Abu Dhabi-backed investment fund said yesterday it would take control of the Telegraph and the Spectator after agreeing loans to repay debts owed by their publishing group's previous owners, the Barclay family.
Alex Lawson
Abu Dhabi-backed fund says it will take over Telegraph and Spectator

The deal would entail a joint venture between the US firm RedBird Capital Partners and Abu Dhabi's International Media Investments (IMI) providing loans to the family, allowing them to pay off their debts to Lloyds Banking Group and take back the publications within weeks.

However, sources close to the situation said the auction of the titles - which began in June after the Barclays lost control of the group over £1.16bn of unpaid debts owed to Lloyds- was continuing.

It emerged last week that the family intended to fully repay their debts with funding from Abu Dhabi.

However, Conservative MPs voiced concerns at the weekend over the danger of foreign influence, asking the government to use national security laws to investigate potential risks around the bid.

RedBird IMI said yesterday it had "reached an agreement to provide a package of loans to the Barclay family allowing them to pay off their debt to Lloyds Bank in full and bring the Telegraph and Spectator out of receivership".

This story is from the November 21, 2023 edition of The Guardian.

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This story is from the November 21, 2023 edition of The Guardian.

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