The takeover of Atos by Onepoint failed. Certain conditions would not have been met. Atos continues its search for a buyer and meets an old acquaintance.

The planned takeover of Atos by Onepoint would save the sinking ship of the French IT services group Atos, but this plan now seems to have been abandoned. A few days ago, rescue seemed close, but on Wednesday Atos announced that Onepoint had withdrawn the proposal because certain conditions had not been met. The future of the French IT giant, which is also active in Belgium, seems to be hanging by a thread again. Or will an old acquaintance come along and offer a lifeline?

Takeover overboard

The planned rescue offer for Atos by Onepoint, the IT consulting company founded by David Layani, has now failed. According to Onepoint, the conditions for concluding an agreement that would pave the way for a sustainable solution to the financial restructuring are not met.

Atos has a debt burden of 4.8 billion euros. It is a race against time to conclude a restructuring agreement that could save the IT company. At the beginning of this month, two takeover offers were on the table, including Onepoint, which is now withdrawing. The other potential buyer is Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínsky of EP Equity Investment, who has been showing interest for some time. After the failed takeover by Onepoint, Křetínsky wants to resume talks with Atos.

French State

The French state would like to see Atos in the hands of a French buyer. Atos has some strategic contracts with the defense and nuclear industries, so the government does not want to see foreign interference.

The French government is trying to intervene by taking over three parts of Atos considered important for national security for a sum of up to one billion euros. Atos said it had struck a deal with the French state that would give it so-called “golden shares” in an Atos subsidiary, Bull SA.