UK Government To Take No Further Action Under National Security And Investment Act On BT Share Acquisition

23rd August 2022

The government has decided to take no further action on the acquisition of 5.9% shares by Altice in BT.

The acquisition by Altice of 5.9% shares in BT was called in for a full national security assessment by Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng on Thursday 26 May.

The government has powers under the National Security and Investment Act 2021 to scrutinise and, if necessary, intervene in qualifying acquisitions on national security grounds.

Following careful consideration, the government will take no further action on the acquisition of 5.9% shares by Altice in BT and the Final Notification has been issued to parties.

The government will always act to protect the UK's critical national telecoms infrastructure if we judge action is necessary. Under the National Security and Investment Act, acquisitions are assessed on a case by case basis, so any future transaction could be subject to a separate assessment under the Act.

French billionaire Patrick Drahi became the telecommunication company's biggest shareholder last year via Altice, surpassing the stake held by Germany's Deutsche Telekom AG. But his move to increase that stake to 18% was being scrutinized under the National Security and Investment Act, which came into effect in January.

The law gives ministers the options of clearing or blocking deals, imposing conditions or even unpicking them retrospectively. These early probes are seen as important test cases as the UK takes a closer interest in major industries.

With the review into Altice's BT stakebuilding concluded, Drahi will be free to acquire more of more of Britain's former telecom monopoly if he wants to. He's publicly supported the carrier's strategy; Chief Executive Officer Philip Jansen has said he regularly hears from his shareholder after quarterly results and Drahi pushes for faster execution on BT's fiber plans.

The decision doesn't close the door to future government interventions.

"We will always act to protect our critical national telecoms infrastructure if we judge action is necessary," a spokeswoman for the BEIS said in a statement. "Under the National Security and Investment Act, acquisitions are assessed on a case by case basis, so any future transaction could be subject to a separate assessment under the Act".

Attention will now move to the assessment of a Chinese-led takeover of the country's biggest microchip factory. Originally due last month, a probe into Nexperia Holding's acquisition of Welsh chipmaker acquisition of Welsh chipmaker Newport Wafer Fab was officially extended until 12 September 2022.

Guardian
Foreign investors own 66percent of UK listed shares analysis shows