Former Tory chancellor Nadhim Zahawi ‘seeks backers for £600m Telegraph bid’

The former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi has approached a number of billionaire backers about financing a potential £600m bid for the Telegraph newspapers and Spectator magazine.

Zahawi, who decided not to stand again in his Stratford-on-Avon seat at the general election, was originally involved as a “middleman”, introducing a UAE-backed consortium to the Barclay family, which enabled them to pay back £1.16bn in loans and take back control of the debt-laden business from Lloyds Banking Group last year.

He was subsequently tipped to become the chair of the media group if RedBird IMI was able to successfully complete a takeover.

However, RedBird IMI, which converted its loans to the Barclays into control of the Telegraph titles, put the titles back up for sale after the British government published legislation to block foreign states or associated individuals from owning newspaper assets in the UK.

Zahawi, who in May was named chair of the Barclay family-owned retailer Very Group, is now reportedly in talks with International Media Investments (IMI) about a bid for the newspapers. IMI is an Abu Dhabi-based investment vehicle that holds a majority stake in RedBird IMI.

Among the potential backers Zahawi is said to have approached are the Reuben family, which owns a large property portfolio as well as a stake in Newcastle United Football Club, according to Sky News which first reported the former cabinet minister’s potential takeover plans.

It is not clear whether Zahawi, who has not made a formal offer, is participating in the auction being run by RedBird IMI, which set a deadline of last Friday for the first round of bids for the titles.

Others in the frame include David Montgomery’s media group National World; Lord Saatchi, a former Tory co-chair and co-founder of advertising group M&C Saatchi; and the Belgian media group Mediahuis.

CVC Capital Partners, the private equity group behind the Six Nations tournament and English Premiership Rugby, also reportedly considered making a bid.