Cable & Wireless says bye-bye to Bouygues

NEWS Cable & Wireless (C&W) has agreed to sell its 20 per cent stake in Bouygues Telecom, the French mobile operator, for £700m. The move is consistent with the UK telco's strategy of pulling out of companies in which it only has a minority interest. Although C&W received the offer from a group of unnamed financial investors, there is now speculation that Bouygues, the industrial behemoth that controls BDT, Bouygues Telecom's major shareholder, will exercise its right to buy C&W's stake. Other shareholders such as French bank, Paribas, German group, Veba, and Telecom Italia also have the option to increase their stake in the telco, in preference to any external bid.