INM papers sale approved

BRITAIN’s Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has effectively approved Independent News & Media’s (INM) proposed sale of its two London-based newspapers to Russian tycoon, Alexander Lebedev – although no update on the sale process has actually been given by the company itself.

INM has been in exclusive talks with Mr Lebedev – who also owns London’s Evening Standard newspaper – over the sale of both the Independent and the Independent on Sunday since before Christmas. That exclusivity agreement was extended in February, but although a deal looked imminent – not least on the back of comments attributed to the Russian businessman in the British press – nothing has been completed as yet.

For its part, INM has remained tight-lipped on the issue, but the Dublin-headquartered group made a submission to the OFT at the end of last month, basically looking for regulatory approval.