 Will Mr Desmond take over the Telegraph? |
Express boss Richard Desmond believes he has the "trump card" in any open auction for the Daily Telegraph. The comments, by a spokeswoman for Mr Desmond, come after a US judge blocked media tycoon Conrad Black's own proposed sale of the Telegraph and other Hollinger International titles.
Lord Black, the former chairman of Hollinger International, had agreed to sell up to the Barclay brothers.
But a US judge ruled the titles were not his to sell.
Olive branch
The judge, Leo Strine, said Lord Black's �260m deal to sell the titles to media and property billionaires the Barclay twins injured other Hollinger International shareholders.
 |  Black had breached his fiduciary and contractual duties persistently and seriously  |
His ruling leaves Hollinger International free to auction its newspaper portfolio, which includes the Daily and Sunday Telegraph, The Jerusalem Post and the Chicago Sun-Times, a process analysts say could fetch up to �600m.
In an apparent olive branch to shareholders, Lord Black said while he "respectfully" disagreed with the judge's ruling it "points the way to a realisation of full value for shareholders" by allowing a formal sale process to go ahead.
Earlier this year, Lord Black was fired by Hollinger International after being accused of siphoning off millions of pounds of the company's funds to bankroll a lavish lifestyle.
Printing press
The Barclay brothers have yet to comment on whether they will now enter a wider auction for the titles.
But a spokeswoman for Richard Desmond said he believed he had the "trump card".
The trump card in question is his co-ownership of a print works with the Telegraph Group - the West Ferry plant in East London.
The site currently prints both Mr Desmond's Express titles and the Daily and Sunday Telegraph.
The Daily Mail and General Trust and several corporate buy out groups are also thought to be interested in buying the Telegraph and other Hollinger titles.
Blunt criticism
In a strongly worded ruling after the court case, Judge Leo Strine said Lord Black had "breached his fiduciary and contractual duties persistently and seriously".
Lord Black's behaviour "threatens grave injury" to Hollinger International, and to the other shareholders in the newspaper group, the judge added. It is not yet known whether Lord Black will appeal.
In a separate lawsuit Hollinger International is suing Lord Black for $200m (�108m), after an internal inquiry found Lord Black had received unauthorised payments from the company late last year.
Lord Black has denied any wrongdoing.
One-Minute World News 
News services
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
