End clap: La Poste is seeking to resell its shares in its virtual operator, La Poste Mobile. A tempting offer that will arouse desire. But what will be the consequences for the 2.3 million subscribers?
A real upheaval is brewing for La Poste Mobile and its 2.3 million customers in France! The group, created in 2011, is today the last mobile virtual network operator – or MVNO, Mobile Virtual Network Operator in English – independent and has managed to become the fifth operator in our country, behind Orange, Bouygues Telecom, Free and SFR. In thirteen years, it has enjoyed great success in a very competitive market, notably by benefiting from excellent visibility in the nearly 7,000 post offices spread across the country and by offering advantageous rates. But it seems the public group has had enough! According to The echoes, he is seeking to sell all or part of his shares, which represent 51% of the MVNO. Contacted, La Poste confirms “having started a reflection on the evolution of the capital of La Poste Mobile with the aim of promoting the success of the brand, leader of the French market for virtual operators, and of accelerating its development”. But then, what will become of all his subscribers?
La Poste Mobile: a resale that can bring big returns
The new manager of Banque Postale, Stéphane Dedeyan, wants to clean up the public group’s accounts. In December, we already learned that it wanted to resell its subsidiary Ma French Bank in the field of online banking, because the service had not achieved profitability, in the face of fierce competition from neobanks and online banks. However, the situation is different for La Poste Mobile, as the MVNO became profitable in 2022, making a profit of 2.38 million euros, and, according to estimates, its turnover is expected to reach 336 million euros. euros in 2024. Suffice to say that the offer will attract more than one!
The one who could be most interested in buying La Poste Mobile’s shares is undoubtedly SFR, which already holds 49% of the company’s shares and rents its network to it. Through this contract, Patrick Drahi’s firm not only has priority over the buyout, but it also has a right of veto over all other proposals. This would be a good opportunity for the operator, which is currently having difficulty retaining its subscribers. Such an operation would allow it to recover La Poste Mobile’s customers by becoming the majority shareholder of a company that is doing well – it shows average growth of 8% each year – while strengthening its image. The other operator which could also be interested in this acquisition is Bouygues Telecom, which has bought quite a few MVNOs in recent years.
The transaction should be completed by this summer. It must be validated by the Minister of Telecoms “because this would amount to privatization”, explains a source close to the matter. However, it should not have a big impact for subscribers. The operation confirms that “will keep its identity and continue to be distributed to the approximately 7,000 post offices.” It is mainly an accounting operation. But if it should be invisible to customers, it could still have an impact on the market, particularly in terms of subscription prices.