US firm RedBird strikes $675M deal for Britains Telegraph, ending dramatic takeover process

RedBird Capital Partners has struck a $675 million deal to buy Britain’s Telegraph newspaper after a dramatic, drawn-out acquisition process, the US private-equity firm said on Friday.It’s the largest investment in UK print media in a decade, cementing RedBird, which was founded in 2014 by investor Gerry Cardinale, as the majority owner of the 170-year-old conservative broadsheet – nicknamed the Torygraph.As part of the deal, International Media Investments, which is backed by a member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will take a minority stake in The Telegraph, subject to court approval, RedBird said.RedBird said it is also in talks with UK-based minority investors “with print media expertise and strong commitment to upholding the editorial values of The Telegraph.” This includes the owner of the UK’s Daily Mail newspaper, who is looking into a nearly 10% stake, according to The Wall Street Journal.Cardinale’s RedBird has stakes in several media ventures, including Skydance Media, which is awaiting approval of its $8B merger with Paramount Global.The deal process for the The Telegraph has been anything but smooth-sailing for RedBird, which initially agreed to buy The Telegraph and its smaller sister paper The Spectator through a joint venture with IMI in 2023.But the British government blocked the takeover that same year following protests from Parliament over foreign entities acquiring UK media, since the deal gave IMI a controlling stake in The Telegraph.The joint venture, RedBird IMI, retained control of The Telegraph while it sought out alternate bids.Dovid Efune, the British-born owner of The New York Sun, emerged as a leading contender to buy The Telegraph, but he struggled to secure financing before a deadline last year.In the meantime, RedBird IMI sold The Spectator for approximately $135 million to Paul Marshall, a British hedge fund manager who owns right-leaning media assets like GB News and UnHerd.However...