Zahawi reportedly helping Dovid Efune in £550m Telegraph bid

(Sharecast News) - Former Conservative chancellor Nadhim Zahawi is actively engaged in efforts to support a £550m takeover of the Daily and Sunday Telegraph led by Dovid Efune, a New York-based media investor and current proprietor of the New York Sun, it was reported on Monday. According to Sky News, Zahawi has been working alongside LionTree, Efune's investment banking advisor, to facilitate the acquisition.

Efune was said to be seeking financial backing from Sir Mohamed Mansour, a former Tory treasurer, with discussions around a potential £150m contribution from Mansour.

That followed earlier reports that Mansour had considered a separate bid for the Telegraph, which Sky said Zahawi had initially helped coordinate.

Currently, Efune has a period of exclusivity to finalise the deal by the end of November.

If successful, the acquisition would mark an unexpected financial gain for RedBird IMI, an Abu Dhabi-backed investment vehicle that previously paid £600m for a call option intended to secure ownership of the Telegraph titles and the Spectator.

Recently, the Spectator was sold separately for £100m to hedge fund billionaire Sir Paul Marshall, who appointed former cabinet minister Michael Gove as its editor.

Sky said insiders indicated that Zahawi could assume a strategic role at the Telegraph if Efune's bid was successful.

Zahawi, with significant Gulf-region ties, had been instrumental in the ongoing process, drawing on connections with influential figures such as Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber, chairman of RedBird IMI.

In addition, Sky said Zahawi was recently named chairman of Very Group, a retail company partially funded by the same UAE investment vehicle.

The Telegraph auction, managed by Raine Group and Robey Warshaw, had attracted interest from other high-profile bidders, including National World's David Montgomery and former advertising mogul Lord Saatchi.

However, Lord Rothermere, owner of the Daily Mail, had previously withdrawn over competition concerns.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.