By Iñigo Alexander
MEXICO CITY, Oct 13 (Reuters) - Grupo Televisa and Fintech Holdings have agreed to buy AT&T's Mexican unit for $2 billion in cash, setting up a showdown with telecoms giant America Movil and marking one of Mexico's biggest M&A deals in recent years.
News of the deal, described as a "bargain" by Scotiabank, sent shares in Televisa, Mexico's largest broadcaster and the world's largest producer of Spanish-language content, surging 5% in after-hours trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
AT&T's Mexican unit, the country's second-largest mobile operator after America Movil's Telcel, had some 24.7 million subscribers as of December, Televisa said.
The deal will give Televisa considerable scale, lifting its share of total fixed and wireless subscribers in Mexico to 19% from 8%, according to the Scotiabank note to clients.
"We think the low price tag and Fintech involvement is, in itself, bad news for (America Movil), as it means the new owners can focus more resources in capex," Scotiabank said.
Fintech, a private investment firm and holding company owned by the Mexican billionaire David Martinez, owns 22.3% of Televisa and will take a 50% stake in the purchasing consortium.
It is Televisa's second attempt to enter the competitive telecommunications sector, after an unsuccessful effort between 2012 and 2014.
Despite Mexico's large population, its proximity to the US, and growing demand for connectivity, establishing a foothold in the sector has long proven a challenge due to high costs and fierce competition from Telcel.
Scotiabank said the new venture could seek a direct-to-cell partnership with operators like Starlink to compete with Telcel, which operates twice as many connectivity towers and runs a much stronger 5G network throughout the country.
For AT&T, the sale will allow it to concentrate on its US fiber and 5G businesses, as it pours more resources into "advanced connectivity" for an AI-enabled future.
Shares in AT&T gained 1.6% to close at $22.85.
The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, pending regulatory approvals in Mexico. The price is subject to adjustments, plus additional contractual and contingent benefits, and will be funded through available cash and non-recourse secured debt financing, Televisa said.
AT&T is not the only company to depart the Mexican telecoms sector.
Spanish telecoms giant Telefonica Movistar in April sold its Mexico business to a US-led consortium for $450 million as it shifts its focus onto core markets in Europe.
AT&T's Mexican unit ended 2025 with revenue of 85.4 billion pesos ($4.65 billion) and operating income of 1.4 billion pesos, Televisa said.
($1 = 18.36 Mexican pesos)
(Reporting by Iñigo Alexander; Additional reporting by Raul Cortes in Mexico City and Juveria Tabassum in Bengaluru; Editing by Jonathan Spicer and Edwina Gibbs)
