Finland Is Building Its Nokia Stake in Response to U.S. Interest
A Nokia OYJ ultra deployable 5G Massive MIMO millimeter wave antenna.
Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
The Finnish state is buying shares of Nokia Oyj to send a signal that it’s ready to protect the maker of 5G mobile networks amid a geopolitical battle in which the U.S. has expressed interest in owning a part of the company.
The state’s equity-asset manager Solidium Oy recently crossed the 5% threshold in Nokia shares, and now has about 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) worth of stock. The telecommunications-equipment maker was earlier this year reported to have hired advisers to consider strategic alternatives and U.S. Attorney General William Barr has suggested his government should buy a stake in Nokia or its rival Ericsson AB.