The auctions for Telegraph Media Group and The Spectator magazine have officially begun.
A release published on Friday morning said that “the boards of the parent companies of Telegraph Media Group Limited and The Spectator (1828) Limited announce that their advisers will today be launching a sale process for each of the businesses”.
It was reported earlier this week that the prior owners of The Telegraph and Spectator, the Barclay family, had offered Lloyds Banking Group £1bn to re-secure the titles.
Among the confirmed contenders for TMG and The Spectator are German publisher Axel Springer, Daily Mail publisher DMGT, former Telegraph editor Will Lewis, regional newspaper giant National World and Unherd and GB News investor Paul Marshall. Former Le Monde investor Daniel Křetínský, News Corp mogul Rupert Murdoch and former Mail Online editor Martin Clarke have also been reported to be interested in the titles.
Lloyds effectively repossessed The Telegraph and Spectator in June after determining a greater than £1bn debt owed to it by the Barclays had become unserviceable.
In June Lloyds removed David Barclay’s sons Aidan and Howard from Telegraph Media Group’s board and put in two non-executive directors to represent the banking group.
[Read more: Race to buy The Telegraph – Who are the latest runners and riders?]
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