The government authorizes the Saudi group STC to access 9.9% of the capital of Telefónica

The Council of Ministers agreed to authorize the operator Saudi Telecom Company (STC) the acquisition of 9.9% of the capital of Telefónica which was announced more than a year ago, in September 2023, for around 2.1 billion euros.

STC directly acquired 4.9% of the capital of Telefónica in shares, plus the acquisition of an additional 5% in derivative instruments which were parked until receiving the green light from the Executive for the operation, which had takes place this Thursday.

The Government had to give its consent for this landing at Telefónica del the largest Arab telecommunications operatorcontrolled by the Saudi sovereign fund PIF, in application of the “anti-takeover shield” approved after the pandemic, because it is a critical activity that affects national security and which also exceeds the investment limit of 500 million euros.

With 9.9%, STC its stake in Telefónica will be equal to that held by CriteriaCaixa and exceeded only by the 10% that the State reached through the State Company of Industrial Participations (SEPI) after learning of the Saudi landing.

He rest of the major shareholders These are BBVA (4.83%) and BlackRock (4.23%). The next step will now be to determine whether STC exercises its right to sit on Telefónica’s board of directors, something that has been taken for granted in recent months.