The financial group PPF/J&T/Tiscali surprisingly announced to the National Property Fund that it will withdraw from the privatization tender. Reportedly the reason given for the withdrawal was Tiscali’s limited access to Cesky Telecom data-rooms. As PPF was not regarded as the preferred winner, it could have been pushed for a higher price; hence its withdrawal eases competitive pressures among the remaining bidders. Nevertheless, improvements on the political front may positively impact the stock in the coming days.
Separately, the Cesky Telecom privatization committee meets today to approve the participation of France Telecom in the tender with financial investors Blackstone/CVC Capital Partners/Providence in a bid for the state’s 51% stake in CT. We believe the entry of France Telecom into the consortium creates a strong group and should increase the competition among the other bidders (Swisscom, Belgacom and Telefonica). According to earlier information Blackstone offered CZK 411 / share in the preliminary bid. Note that final bids are due by March 29.