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Region: Telefónica doubles down in Brazil, while mulling Latin American exit

By  |  March 19, 2018
Spanish multinational telephone company Telefónica has highlighted Brazil’s importance for the group’s strategy, announcing an investment plan of €6.6 billion, with a special focus on optic fiber development.

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    This strategic bolstering in Brazil, announced to analysts and investors on Wall Street, coincides with the decision to review various assets in Latin America for a possible divestment in order to deal with pressure in financial markets and reduce the company’s debt.

    Telefónica is thought to be contemplating several options, including the direct sale of shares, as it did in 2013 with the sale of 40% of Telefónica Centroamérica to Corporación Multi Inversiones or the recent sale of 40% of Telxius to KKR.

    Likewise, the company has mulled the option of selling its assets in some countries. Industry sources point out that Colombia and Mexico are two markets in which Telefónica has considered this option.

    Telefónica is focused on improving the returns on capital and will explore how to value those assets “that from our point of view may be undervalued in the sum of Telefónica’s shares”, explained José María Álvarez-Pallete, president of the Telefónica group . In addition to Brazil, the company has operations in about a dozen Latin American countries.

    Full Content: El País

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