The British born publisher of the New York Sun is tipped as the new favourite to win the auction for Daily and Sunday Telegraph ahead of a midnight deadline today for bids.
Dovid Efune is seen as the clear front runner with an offer for the right leaning national titles of around £550 million.
Mr Efune is also known for his conservative views and is a strong supporter of Israel as well as a backer of Donald Trump.
His financial backers include asset managers Oaktree and Hudson Bay Capital, the family office of US hedge fund manager Michael Leffell and the investment arm of Canadian real estate developer Beedie, according to Semafor, which first reported the bid.
Mr Efune has owned the New York Sun, which was revived in 2002 to provide a conservative alternative voice to the liberal New York Times, since 2021.
Before that, he was editor-in-chief of the Algemeiner, which he is credited for transforming from a Yiddish-language print newspaper into a major online news publication for international Jewish news.
Mr Efune is one of only two bidders to have attended senior management presentations at the Telegraph, the BBC reported today.
If the bid is successful it will reestablish the link between the Telegraph and its former owner Conrad Black, who is described as a “founding director” and “contributing editor” of the New York Sun.
Canadian born Lord Black of CrossHarbour was convicted of fraud and obstructing justice in 2007 and jailed for more than three years, but was pardoned in 2019 by Donald Trump when he was US President. The 80 year old owned the Telegraph titles from 1986 to 2005 through his Hollinger vehicle.
Other bidders still in the frame include hedge fund tycoon Sir Paul Marshall, who last week snapped up the Spectator for £100 million and installed former Tory Cabinet minister Michael Gove as the new editor replacing Fraser Nelson.
Another is David Montgomery’s National World, which owns regional titles including the Scotsman and the Yorkshire Post. Montgomery was the other bidder to attend a presentation by the current Telegraph management.
Former Tory chancellor Nadhim Zahawi is also thought to be trying to raise money in the Middle East to finance a bid.
The Telegraph’s UAE controlled owners RedBird IMI is seeking at least £500 million for the newspaper in order to recoup the £600 million it paid last year to part settle a £1.2 billion debt owed by previous owners the Barclay family to Lloyds Banking Group. However, RedBirdIMI’s ownership was effectively blocked by the Conservative government.
