Altice France rejects joint bid for SFR from French telecoms operators

The logo of French telecoms operator SFR is seen on an advertising board in Saint-Denis near Paris, France June 25, 2024 REUTERS/Yves Herman

(Reuters) -Altice France, the owner telecoms firm SFR, has rejected a bid from three French rivals to buy the operator, Altice CEO Arthur Dreyfuss told staff in a memo on Wednesday, setting back a potential deal that could spur more consolidation in the European telecoms market.

Bouygues Telecom, Iliad's Free and Orange said late on Tuesday they had submitted a 17-billion-euro ($19.8 billion) non-binding offer to buy most of Altice France's assets, valuing the company at 21 billion euros.