The Barclay family regained control of the Telegraph newspaper on Monday, with assistance from Abu Dhabi-backed company Red Bird IMI, which helped in repaying £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion) in debts to Lloyds Bank. However, the proposed transfer of the newspaper to Red Bird IMI has become questionable after the British government officially intervened last week to prevent this move while it investigates whether any acquisition would have an impact on freedom of expression under the new ownership.
The struggle to own the right-leaning newspaper, alongside the political magazine Spectator, began earlier this year when Lloyds Bank took control of them after a long-standing dispute over debts. The Barclay family collaborated with Abu Dhabi-backed Red Bird IMI to repay the debts and had a deadline until Monday to settle the amounts before the court would allow the newspaper and magazine to be auctioned.
Under the plan, Red Bird IMI was set to take control of the newspaper and magazine by exchanging debt for equity. However, the British government intervened officially last week to stop the transfer of assets to Red Bird IMI until it conducts an investigation into whether any acquisition would affect freedom of expression under the new owner. Lloyds Bank confirmed in a statement that it received the funds. Red Bird IMI is led by former CNN president Jeff Zucker and is backed by Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of the ruling family in Abu Dhabi.
