The owner of The New York Sun, a right-leaning American newspaper, is weighing a surprise bid to become the new owner of The Daily Telegraph.
Sky News has learnt that Dovid Efune, who acquired the former daily broadsheet in 2021, has expressed an interest in acquiring one of Britain’s most influential daily newspapers and its Sunday sister title.
Mr Efune is also chairman of The Algemeiner, a Jewish newspaper originally published in Yiddish but which now appears in English.
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Mr Efune is being advised by the boutique investment bank Liontree while on Wednesday evening, Semafor, a US news outlet, reported that he had financial backing from Oaktree and Hudson Bay Capital, as well as the family office of hedge fund manager Michael Lefell.
The Daily and Sunday Telegraph are expected to change hands for between £400m and £500m.
A deadline for formal bids has been set for September 27, with National World, the London-listed vehicle headed by David Montgomery, and Sir Paul Marshall – who this week paid £100m for The Spectator – also among the likely bidders.
Mr Efune has not been publicly linked to the process until now, although industry sources said he first began exploring an offer when the original auction of the Telegraph titles kicked off last year.
One source said a management presentation had been scheduled for him with Telegraph executives.
In an opinion article published earlier this year, Mr Efune wrote: “At the Sun, we hold the view that the opportunity remains greater than ever for any newspaper that is compiled with a view to serve the reader above all.
“In the words of Charles Dana, a newspaper “must correspond to the wants of the people. It must furnish that sort of information which the people demand, or else it can never be successful.”
The Telegraph auction is being orchestrated by advisers to RedBird IMI, the Abu Dhabi-backed entity which was thwarted in its efforts to buy the media titles by a change in ownership law.
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A separate bid orchestrated by Nadhim Zahawi, the former chancellor, is the subject of bilateral discussions with IMI, the Abu Dhabi-based venture which wanted to take a controlling stake in the British media assets before being blocked by the government.
Sky News revealed exclusively last month that Sir Paul was the frontrunner to buy The Spectator, which along with the Telegraph titles was owned by the Barclay family until their respective holding companies were forced into liquidation last year.
RedBird IMI, a joint venture between IMI and the American investor RedBird, paid £600m last year to acquire a call option that was intended to convert into equity ownership.
A sale of The Spectator for £100m would leave it needing to sell the Telegraph titles for £500m to recoup that outlay in full – or more than that once RedBird IMI’s fees and costs associated with the process are taken into account.
Of the unsuccessful bidders for the Telegraph, Lord Saatchi, the former advertising mogul, offered £350m, while Mediahuis, the Belgian publisher, also failed to make it through to the next round of the auction.
Lord Rothermere, the Daily Mail proprietor, pulled out of the bidding earlier in the summer amid concerns that he would be blocked on competition grounds.
Sky News recently revealed that Mr Zahawi had sounded out Boris Johnson, the former prime minister, about an executive role with The Daily Telegraph if he succeeded in buying the newspapers.
IMI is controlled by the UAE’s deputy prime minister and ultimate owner of Manchester City Football Club, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
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The Lloyds debt, which totalled more than £1.15bn, was repaid by RedBird IMI on behalf of the family.
RedBird IMI’s attempt to take ownership of the Telegraph titles and The Spectator was thwarted by the last Conservative government’s decision to change media law to prevent foreign states exerting influence over national newspapers.
RedBird IMI declined to comment, while Mr Efune has been contacted for comment.
