A consortium led by Bouygues has signed a deal worth $23.44 billion (€17 billion equivalent) to acquire SFR, France's second-largest telecom operator by subscribers, from debt-laden parent Altice France, according to a report by Reuters.

The signing turns months of negotiation into a binding agreement and represents one of the largest telecom transactions in Europe in recent years. It also sets the stage for the most significant restructuring of the French mobile and fixed market since Free Mobile's entry in 2012.

SFR has sat at the center of French consolidation speculation since Altice founder Patrick Drahi began exploring options for the asset as his group struggled under a heavy debt load. The operator carries substantial liabilities of its own, and any buyer has had to weigh the €23.44 billion price tag against the cost of assuming or restructuring that debt burden.

For Bouygues Telecom, the transaction is transformative in scale. Acquiring SFR would combine the country's third and second largest mobile operators, reshaping a four-player market that regulators have long watched closely. The structure of the consortium — and the exact split of ownership and financing among its members — will determine how antitrust authorities at the French competition authority and, potentially, Brussels assess the deal.

Competition review is the next hurdle. The French telecoms market has been defined for more than a decade by aggressive price competition among four national operators: Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom and Free (Iliad). Any move from four to three players in mobile would almost certainly require remedies, likely including spectrum divestments and possibly commitments on wholesale access or a package of assets for a new entrant.

For Altice France, the sale provides an exit from a business it assembled during a debt-fueled acquisition spree. Drahi bought SFR from Vivendi in 2014 for roughly €15 billion and merged it with Numericable, then expanded through further deals including the acquisition of Altice's French and international media assets. The group's leverage ultimately forced asset sales across its portfolio, and SFR — its largest French holding — was the biggest remaining prize.

Reuters did not report a closing timeline in its initial account. The transaction will need to clear French competition approval and financing conditions before completion. Industry attention now shifts to the remedies the consortium may offer, and to how Orange and Iliad respond to a market that could soon have three major converged operators instead of four.