When considering the fate of telcos as ‘dumb pipes,’ commentators often muse as to whether MNOs will eventually be snapped up by private equity (PE) investors, as has been the fate of certain utilities, such as UK water companies. While investors maintain a healthy appetite for investment in fixed-line telco assets, the complex world of mobile connectivity is not of such keen interest. Across Europe, PE investors are making further inroads in the telecoms sector. Apax Partners and Warburg Pincus are considering making bids for BC Partners’ majority stake in European operator United Group, alongside telecoms firms Orange, Iliad Group, Telekom Austria Group, e& and STC. United Group is a telecom and pay TV provider, with operations in Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia, Greece, North Macedonia, and Montenegro…