Bharti’s Bold Investment in BT

In a significant move on 12 August 2024, Bharti Global, part of Sunil Bharti Mittal’s conglomerate, acquired a 24.5% stake in BT Group from Altice UK, paying around £3.2 billion.
The deal last year firmly positioned Bharti as BT’s largest shareholder, marking a dramatic realignment in telecom ownership and strategy.

Mittal emphasized the deep, longstanding ties between the two companies, noting, “Bharti and British Telecom (BT) have an enduring relationship going back more than two decades …”
That history stretches back to the late 1990s when BT held a stake in Bharti Airtel, establishing a foundation for today's partnership.

BT CEO Allison Kirkby welcomed the investment as a powerful endorsement of the company’s transformation strategy. “We welcome investors who recognise the long-term value of our business, and this scale of investment from Bharti Global is a great vote of confidence in the future of BT Group and our strategy.”

The deal arrived shortly after Mittal signaled he was observing BT’s performance and saw undervaluation in its assets and strategy. Strategically, Bharti’s stakes open doors to collaboration around 5G, AI-driven R\&D, and core engineering, leveraging Bharti's expertise from Airtel and OneWeb as BT continues to expand its partnership opportunities.

The merger with Eutelsat-backed OneWeb hints at potential synergies, particularly in satellite-backed network growth. Bharti confirmed it has no plans beyond the 24.5% stake—no full takeover or board seat ambitions.
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Beyond financial muscle and high-tech know-how, the agreement also signals a deeper India–UK telecom alignment. Mittal praised BT’s “tremendous amount of physical infrastructure” and praised Kirkby’s execution as “nothing but outstanding.”

For BT, it’s a validated path forward—a vote of confidence backed by fresh capital and global insight. For Bharti, it’s a platform in Europe and a strategic blueprint for deeper collaboration on next-gen networks.