Telecom Argentina acquires local subsidiary of Telefónica; Milei suspects possible monopoly

BUENOS AIRES (AP) — Telecom Argentina has acquired the local subsidiary of Telefonica for $1.245 billion, a deal that President Javier Milei's government suspects is a monopoly.

Telecom, whose main shareholders are the Fintech fund of Mexican businessman David Martínez Guzmán and the Clarín Group —which, among others, owns the newspaper with the same name—, indicated in a statement on Monday that it completed the acquisition of the share capital of Telefónica Móviles de Argentina SA “in an intense and rigorous competitive process.”

Investors reported that they received financial support from foreign banks BBVA, Deutsche Bank, Santander and the Chinese bank ICBC for 1.17 billion dollars for the purchase of Telefónica.

Following the announcement, Milei's government warned in a statement that "this acquisition could leave approximately 70% of telecommunications services in the hands of a single economic group, which would create a monopoly," and announced that "it will take all pertinent measures to prevent this."

As a first step, the government will notify the National Communications Agency and the competition defence commission so that they can review the operation.

Telecom offers fixed and mobile telephone services, cable television, streaming services and virtual wallet. It also operates in Paraguay, Chile and Uruguay. The company did not comment on the government's statement.

With the acquisition of Telefónica, Telecom said it aims to expand fixed and mobile broadband coverage, accelerate the deployment of fiber optics and 5G.