Telefonica eyes end-October for IPO of German unit?

Spanish telecoms group Telefonica is looking to launch an initial public offering (IPO) of its German unit at the end of October, according to a report by Spanish business newspaper Cinco Dias, which cites people familiar with the process. Telefonica, which is struggling to cut its debt burden amid falling revenue and profit in its domestic market, is aiming to raise as much as EUR1.5 billion (USD1.8 billion) from the sale of a potential 20% stake in Telefonica Germany (O2), according to reports. The firm had earlier explored the possibility of a merger of its local unit with E-Plus, the German wireless business of the Netherlands’ KPN Telecom, which at the time was fending off an unsolicited offer by Mexico-based America Movil (AM). However, in June 2012 KPN announced it had failed to find a buyer for E-Plus, citing ‘adverse conditions in financial markets’ as the reason behind the collapse of talks, and shortly after AM succeeded in its bid to increase its stake in the Dutch telco to 28%.