Altice granted Numericable exemption

France’s financial markets regulator, the AMF, has granted Altice an exemption from an obligation to launch a public offering for Numericable associated with its acquisition of a controlling stake in the cable operator.

The move opens the way for Altice to acquire the stakes in Numericable held by private equity groups Carlyle and Cinven.

The pair respectively hold 34.59% of Numericable. Following the sale to Altice, the latter will hold a 74.59% stake in the cable operator.

Altice’s exemption from the requirement to launch a public offering was based on the AMF’s view that it already held a dominant stake in Numericable through its existing agreements with Cinven and Carlyle.