Spain's Telefonica reshapes Latin America strategy after leadership change
June 16 (Reuters) - Spanish telecom giant Telefonica (TEF.MC), opens new tab has accelerated plans to reduce its exposure in Spanish-speaking Latin America, where profitability is lower than capital cost, to focus instead on four main markets under new CEO Marc Murtra.
Following both an ownership and a management shake-up in the last year, Telefonica has withdrawn from many countries in southern America, building on a process that began with the sale of some Central America units in 2019.
Telefonica's market focus will now be on the four core businesses of Brazil, Britain, Germany and Spain, and Murtra plans to introduce a new strategy for the company in the second half of this year.
Below is a list of developments within the Group's Latin America operations:
Telefonica has hired investment bank JP Morgan (JPM.N), opens new tab to sell its Mexican business, newspaper Cinco Dias reported in February, citing unidentified financial sources.
Asked about the process during an earnings call in February, Murtra said he would not comment on deals until they were signed.
Telefonica said it was selling its unit in Argentina to Telecom Argentina (TECO2m.BA), opens new tab for $1.245 billion. In March, Argentina's presidential office suspended the acquisition on anti-trust concerns.
Telefonica agreed to sell its Peruvian unit in April to Argentina's Integra Tec International for about 900,000 euros ($1.04 million). Its Peruvian unit had filed for bankruptcy protection in February.
Telefonica booked 1.7 billion euros in capital losses in the first quarter on the sale of its units in Peru and Argentina.
Telefonica has not announced any plans for selling the unit. In February, Jose Luis Rodriguez, the local head of mobile phone unit Movistar said it planned to invest $500 million in the country over two years to expand 4G and 5G services.
Telefonica agreed in March to sell its majority stake in the Colombian unit for $400 million to New York-listed Millicom International (MICC.F), opens new tab, which operates telecom companies across Latin America under the brand Tigo.
Telefonica has agreed to sell its Uruguayan unit for $440 million to Millicom.
Telefonica has agreed with Millicom to sell its unit in Ecuador for $380 million.
Telefonica has hired Citi as an adviser to sell its Chilean business, news website El Confidencial reported on May, citing unidentified market sources. Telefonica declined to comment.
Telefonica sold its mobile phone unit in El Salvador in 2021 to General International Telecom in a deal valued at $144 million.
Telefonica sold its Panama unit in 2019 to Millicom for 536 million euros.
Telefonica sold its Costa Rica unit in 2020 to Liberty Latin America, in a $538 million transaction.
Telefonica's mobile telecom assets in Nicaragua were sold to Millicom in 2019 acquired for $437 million.
Telefonica sold its operations in Guatemala to rival America Movil (AMXB.MX), opens new tab for 293 million euros in 2019.
Telefonica's Sao Paulo-listed unit Telefonica Brasil (VIVT3.SA), opens new tab is part of its four "core businesses". The subsidiary carried out several small acquisitions, such as cloud services firms IPNET and IPNET USA, for up to 230 million reais ($41.49 million) last July.
($1 = 0.8639 euros)
($1 = 5.5437 reais)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Finextra
an hour ago
- Finextra
Nubank introduces recurring bill payments on Pix
Nubank announces the launch of Automated Pix, a new option to pay recurring bills with convenience and security, available to customers starting June 16. 0 The new feature will be accompanied by the 'Search Upcoming Bills' feature, which will give customers complete freedom to choose how and when to pay - whether fully automatically or in a facilitated manner, with alerts and simple one-click approvals directly in the app. The 'Search Upcoming Bills' feature is ideal for customers who prefer to review their bills before each payment, helping them maintain financial control throughout the month with autonomy. The feature will be available gradually next week. 'We believe that empowering our customers is essential. With 'Search Upcoming Bills', we combine the convenience of Automated Pix with the freedom to decide how to pay bills. The tool notifies customers about bills that follow the recurring billing model. This allows them to decide whether to authorize the payment with a click or decline it', explains Maristela Calazans, Nubank's general manager of the Nu Account. With Automated Pix, customers can easily set up payments for recurring bills such as water, electricity, internet, condo fees, gym memberships, school fees, and streaming services using Pix. The security of Automated Pix follows the high standards already adopted by Nubank for other Pix features, including confirmation via PIN for each manually authorized payment, real-time fraud and suspicious key alerts, Street Mode (Modo Rua), which limits transactions outside secure networks, daily Pix limits controls and a 'trusted contacts list' that can be set up. How to use Automated Pix with Search Upcoming Bills Starting the Payment: The billing company will provide a QR Code or the option to copy and paste the Pix key for payment. By scanning the code or pasting the key into the Nubank app, the customer will automatically identify if the payment is enabled for Automated Pix. Setting up Automated Pix: If the payment allows Automated Pix, the customer will see a screen with the account details. There will be two options: Enable Automated Payment: Confirm and register the payment to be made automatically monthly. Pay upon approval ('Search Upcoming Bills' feature): Choose to receive monthly alerts to approve payment on the due date with just one click. Automated Payment: By opting for automated payment, Nubank will charge the amount on each month's due date without needing any new action. Payment upon approval: If the customer prefers to receive alerts, Nu will send notifications for the customer to approve the payment with a click and confirm their security PIN. Full Management: Customers can manage all Automated Pix payments at any time in the Payment Assistant area of the app. There, it is possible to pause, cancel, or modify authorizations as needed.
FF News
2 hours ago
- FF News
Bitget Joins UNICEF Game Changers Coalition to Provide Blockchain Education to 300K People in 2025
Bitget , the leading cryptocurrency exchange and Web3 company, has entered a three-year partnership with UNICEF Luxembourg to advance digital skills and blockchain literacy among young people. The partnership enrolls Bitget into the Game Changers Coalition (GCC) led by UNICEF Office of Innovation (OOI). Support from Bitget will help reach 300,000 people – including adolescent girls, parents, mentors and teachers with blockchain skills- across eight regions; Armenia, Brazil, Cambodia, India, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Morocco, and South Africa. Through the partnership, Bitget Academy , the educational arm of Bitget, will help develop UNICEF's first interactive, online and in-person blockchain training module based on video games creation skills development for teachers and young people. This is a welcome inclusion to a curriculum already reaching hundreds of thousands of people. Support from Bitget will also help expand the Coalition's reach to a ninth country. ' This partnership reflects our shared belief that digital skills are a powerful driver of opportunity and inclusion,' said Sandra Visscher, Executive Director of UNICEF Luxembourg. 'By collaborating with Bitget, we want to empower adolescent young people with the tools, knowledge, and confidence to shape their own futures. Innovation should be a force for inclusion, opening doors, broadening horizons, and ensuring that technology works for everyone, everywhere.' 'Emerging technologies should not be reserved for the privileged few—they must be introduced early and equitably. Blockchain, with its real-world use case and potential for social good, is one of the most powerful tools we can give to our younger generation to build products that change the way we look at modern society. With Blockchain4Her, what began as a mission to empower hundreds of women has scaled into a global movement to educate thousands of girls. This is the kind of scale and impact blockchain was built for,' said Gracy Chen, CEO at Bitget. In a move to extend the ecosystem's reach, Bitget will also aim to introduce UNICEF to leading blockchain protocols and developers from across the Web3 landscape to participate in the educational initiative. These contributors could serve as mentors and partners, offering diverse perspectives and possibilities for blockchain technologies. Every year, adolescent girls and young women in low and middle-income countries miss out on USD 15 billion in economic opportunities due to a gap in internet access and digital skills relative to their male peers. With 90 per cent of jobs today requiring digital competencies, the Game Changers Coalition responds to the urgency of closing the gender digital skills gap. Together, Bitget and UNICEF are working to build a scalable, inclusive model that equips young women with the tools to navigate and shape the digital economy of tomorrow. As part of the Game Changers Coalition, Bitget joins the Global Video Game Coalition, Micron Foundation and ecosystem builders – Women in Games in a shared ambition to reach 1.1 million girls by 2027, with learning and skills-building opportunities. With the help of Bitget Academy, and support from the $10M initiative Blockchain4Her , Bitget plans to enhance digital literacy and financial independence among women taught to them at their young age. Bitget's Blockchain4Her initiative has previously supported women through mentorship programs, funding opportunities, and educational resources. Together, Bitget and UNICEF Luxembourg aim to empower a new generation of girls with the knowledge and skills they need to participate actively in the evolving crypto economy. People In This Post Gracy Chen Bitget
Finextra
2 hours ago
- Finextra
Could Oil surge past $80 or is $120 the real target?: By Prakash Bhudia
Just when the markets exhaled, the Middle East lit a match. A surprise Israeli strike on Iranian military sites jolted the global energy complex, sending Brent crude surging past $77 and WTI following close behind. Stocks faltered, gold caught a bid, and traders did what they do best in times of uncertainty - scrambled. Now, the whispers are growing louder: Is $80 oil a foregone conclusion? Or are we staring down the barrel of something bigger - $120 oil and a fresh inflation inferno? Flashpoint to fuel pump: The anatomy of an Oil surge Right now, $80 oil isn't some wild call - it's practically within touching distance. With WTI flirting with $72 and Brent around $73, we're just one headline away from liftoff. The recipe is classic: tighter-than-expected U.S. crude inventories, a seasonal surge in summer fuel demand, and geopolitical jitters that just won't quit. Add in fragile optimism over US-China trade thawing and you've got a bullish setup with teeth. Source: LSEG Data and Analytics, The New York Times Markets don't move on logic - they move on fear and hope. Right now, both are pointing in the same direction. J.P. Morgan's $120 warning Here's where the story turns from bullish to boiling. According to J.P. Morgan, a serious escalation involving Iran could catapult oil to $120 per barrel. That would torch any disinflationary dreams the Fed was nursing and throw rate-cut narratives into the shredder. 'Oil at $120 would put rate hikes back on the table,' warns J.P. Morgan. Translation? Your commute gets pricier, your groceries cost more, and central banks—already tightrope walking between recession and recovery - get pushed into policy panic mode. And politically, it's a landmine. Former President Trump has tethered his anti-inflation pitch to the promise of cheap energy. A 50% spike in crude? That message implodes. Risk-off rotation: Markets react to missile headlines Traders didn't wait for the weekend to hedge. U.S. futures sank over 1% on the missile news, while gold and the Swiss franc soared - classic safe-haven plays. Energy and defence stocks caught a bid. Wall Street rotated out of tech and into trenches. Source: FactSet Iran has promised a response. Oil traders are staying long through the weekend. Beyond the noise: Are we entering an Oil supercycle? Forget demand surges from China or EV delays. This time, the supercycle thesis isn't about consumption - it's about conflict. For months, markets brushed off the idea that geopolitical instability could trigger a structural oil rally. But with missiles flying, inventories thinning, and futures jumping, that narrative is back in play. What if this isn't just a price spike, but a regime change? Technical analysis: Will $80 be a pit stop on the way to $120? The answer depends on two fronts: diplomacy and retaliation. If things escalate further, $80 could be just the beginning. But if the weekend brings a pause in hostilities, traders might take some heat off the market - for now. Still, with inflation high, central banks twitchy, and oil at the mercy of missiles and politics, the price action is anything but stable. Source: Deriv MT5 The information contained within this article is for educational purposes only and is not intended as financial or investment advice. The performance figures quoted refer to the past, and past performance is not a guarantee of future performance or a reliable guide to future performance. The information may become outdated. Do your own research before making any trading decisions.
