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Telus Moves to Fully Acquire Digital Unit to Boost AI Control

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Canadian telecom giant Telus announced Thursday its intention to acquire all outstanding shares of its digital services subsidiary, Telus Digital, aiming for greater control over its artificial intelligence capabilities. The offer values Telus Digital at approximately $946.8 million, with Telus proposing to buy the remaining shares at $3.40 each—a 15% premium over the subsidiary’s last closing price.

Currently, Telus owns about 57% of the digital unit directly and through other entities. The subsidiary’s U.S.-listed shares have declined over 24% this year, underperforming compared to Telus’s parent company stock, which has gained nearly 19%.

This acquisition bid highlights Telus’ strategic move to strengthen operational integration of Telus Digital, which supports businesses in adopting AI and developing data strategies amid a global push toward AI technology adoption. CEO Darren Entwistle emphasized that full ownership would accelerate AI capability enhancement and SaaS transformation across Telus’s operations.

In a related investment push, Telus revealed plans last month to invest over C$70 billion (US$51.4 billion) in expanding Canada’s network infrastructure over the next five years, including the launch of two new AI-focused data centers.

Barclays is advising Telus on the transaction.

PayPal Shares Drop Amid EU Lawmaker’s Comments on Potential New Fees

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PayPal’s shares experienced a 5% drop on Friday following concerns raised by European Union lawmaker Bernd Lange about the possibility of new fees on U.S. tech companies like PayPal and Google due to escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and Europe. Lange, who leads the European Parliament’s international trade committee, suggested that digital service providers, including PayPal, could face additional charges as part of the EU’s response to the U.S.’s tariff threats.

The announcement follows comments from U.S. President Donald Trump, who indicated the possibility of higher tariffs on both the European Union and Canada if they collaborate in a manner that harms the U.S. economy. While the idea of imposing tariffs on digital services is complicated, due to the reliance on digital transactions rather than physical goods, the potential for such measures has contributed to investor anxiety.

A spokesperson from the German government echoed Lange’s comments, stating that “nothing is off the table” in terms of possible retaliatory actions. Despite these tensions, PayPal declined to provide further comment.

Analysts expressed doubt over the actual likelihood of these measures being enacted, with Argus Research analyst Stephen Biggar describing the situation as “sell first and ask questions later.” The potential implementation of tariffs on finance and payments remains uncertain, but the fear of such measures has triggered volatility in the stock market.