Israeli Consortium Acquires Hot Mobile for Approximately 1.2 Billion Shekels

An Israeli consortium comprising Delek Israel (40%), Keystone Infrastructure Fund (40%), and Leumi Partners (20%) has finalized the purchase of Hot Mobile from the Altice Group, owned by billionaire Patrick Drahi. The deal values Hot Mobile at about 1.2 billion shekels, primarily financed through the acquired company's own funds. The transaction structure includes 700 million shekels of Hot Mobile's existing debt and an additional 500 million shekels paid in cash according to the new ownership shares.

Sources familiar with the deal noted that throughout the negotiation, there were attempts to inflate the company's valuation with misleading figures circulated in the media, allegedly benefiting Altice's foreign creditors. The official company reports now reveal the true valuation. Hot Mobile serves approximately 2 million subscribers and generates over 1.5 billion shekels in annual revenue.

This acquisition follows Altice's decision late last year to sell its Hot television and communications group due to high leverage, ultimately opting to sell Hot Mobile separately. Delek Israel anticipates synergies in the communications sector, including leveraging its 210 convenience store branches to sell mobile devices and enhance customer loyalty programs. Keystone, specializing in infrastructure development, is interested in the shared network operated by Hot Mobile and Partner, PHI Networks, which covers around 3,000 cellular sites.

The buyers also expect to benefit from stabilization and growth in the local cellular market after challenging years. Israeli telecom companies have recently improved efficiency and profit margins, with prices rising again despite still being relatively low globally.