The Spanish government has given authorisation for Vivendi to exchange the Prisa convertible bonds it acquired in February into equity, Prisa said in a statement.

Spain passed a law in 2020 requiring foreign companies to seek approval to buy significant stakes in Spanish listed companies.

Heavily-indebted Prisa had sold 130 million euros ($143 million) worth of convertible bonds in a move to reduce its debt.

Prisa said if Vivendi were the only bondholder to convert its bonds into equity, its stake would rise to 15%.

If Vivendi and all other holders of the convertible bonds were to convert all their bonds, the French group would end up with about 10.9% in Prisa, up from its current 9.51%, based on Refinitiv data.

A Vivendi spokesperson declined to comment.

In late 2021, Vivendi filed a request to raise its stake in Prisa to up to 29.9% from the 9.94% it held at the time, as a part of plans to extend its reach in the Spanish-language markets in Europe, Latin America and the United States.

A few months later, Vivendi withdrew its request.

Vivendi had built its stake in Prisa by first acquiring a 7.89% stake from HSBC for 52 million euros ($57.25 million).

Prisa's largest single shareholder is activist fund Amber Capital, led by French investor Joseph Oughourlian, with a 29.57% stake, Refinitiv Eikon information shows.

($1 = 0.9083 euros)

(Reporting by Matteo Allievi, editing by Inti Landauro and Jane Merriman)