- Elliott is pushing DT to drop any T-Mobile US merger ambitions
- The activist investor reportedly wants DT to focus on buybacks instead
- DT already controls a roughly 53% stake in T-Mobile US
Activist investor Elliott Investment Management is reportedly urging Deutsche Telekom to focus on shareholder returns rather than pursuing a potential mega-merger with T-Mobile US. The pressure comes as DT evaluates how best to leverage its majority stake in the U.S. wireless operator while investors look for clearer paths to value creation.
Elliott is the same activist investment firm that raised a ruckus over AT&T, Crown Castle and before that, Telekom Italia, back in the day.
Representatives from Elliott and DT were not immediately available for comment. T-Mobile declined to comment.
Elliott has built a stake in DT, according to Reuters, but the news agency was unable to determine the exact size of the ownership.
Earlier this week, Bloomberg reported that Elliott indicated it wants DT to ditch the potential merger idea with T-Mobile US and look at other ways to unlock shareholder value, such as larger share buybacks.
T-Mobile executives also don't appear to be angling for such a deal. Citing unidentified people familiar with the matter, a Semafor report in late July said that T-Mobile’s US executives told DT that they no longer supported a proposed $300 billion merger between the two companies. Regulatory concerns and lack of shareholder support were mentioned.
The publication said that T-Mobile executives were told by government officials that regulators – including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States – would probably seek a guarantee that T-Mobile’s US revenue would be reinvested in or otherwise remain in the country.
DT and T-Mobile US ties run deep
The ties between T-Mobile in the U.S. and DT run deep. DT spent years building up its ownership in T-Mobile, reaching a roughly 53% stake in 2023.
T-Mobile’s current CEO, Srini Gopalan, was the CEO of Deutsche Telekom Germany before he joined T-Mobile as chief operating officer in March 2025. He succeeded former CEO Mike Sievert in November 2025. Gopalan also had been on T-Mobile’s board for several years.
DT taps AWS exec
In other DT news, Jan Hofmeyr, former AWS head of Telecom, was appointed as the new board member responsible for Product and Technology at DT, effective November 1. He is replacing Abdu Mudesir, who left DT this past spring ahead of his role at Verizon, where he will be taking over for Joe Russo, who is retiring.
DT is also getting a new finance chief. Christian Illek is leaving the company at the end of April; he will be replaced by Dhananjay Mirchandani.
In addition, Mladen Mitic will become DT’s new Chief Product & Digital Officer. He previously was responsible for B2C-Commercial Growth in Deutsche Telekom’s Europe segment and will report to Hofmeyr. Mitic succeeds Jonathan Abrahamson.
Read more about Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom eyes full combo with T-Mobile US