Ouest-France financial losses and debt, Digi Mart USA News (France): The French media group SIPA Ouest-France is going through a major financial crisis. According to the source article, it recorded a net loss of €33.3 million in 2025, while its debt is increasing and its equity is declining.
The group nonetheless receives several million euros in public aid each year.
The figures point to a rapid deterioration. In 2025, SIPA Ouest-France recorded revenue of €524.8 million, compared with €529.2 million in 2024, a decline of 0.8 percent over one year.
The group’s net result shows a loss of €33.3 million, compared with a deficit of €17.3 million in 2024. According to the article, losses rose by 92.5 percent while revenue stagnated.
Consolidated equity follows the same trend. It stood at €220.3 million in 2022 and €190.7 million at the end of 2024.
At the end of 2025, it was estimated at about €158 million, according to available data, subject to confirmation from final accounts.
At the same time, gross financial debt climbed to €130.3 million, and cash fell from €81.1 million to €63.1 million within one year.
The article notes that the 2024 and 2025 net results refer to the group’s share and are directly comparable, while 2022 and 2023 data may reflect different accounting scopes.
Despite these difficulties, Ouest-France continues to receive state financial support. In 2025, the newspaper received about €6.28 million in press aid, mainly to finance newspaper distribution.
Across the SIPA Ouest-France group, aid reached about €13.2 million, compared with €12.9 million in 2024.
These subsidies support an activity weakened by declining sales of print newspapers and advertising revenue, but the article states they are not enough to restore profitability. It also says the national budget uncertainty could further weaken the group if press aid is reduced.
Management is seeking to cut spending and has launched a savings plan of €15 million per year. In September 2026, unions reportedly raised the prospect of eliminating 156 positions, including 116 in newsrooms.
The article also cites concern over the new television channel Novo19, whose launch is weighing heavily on the group’s accounts without yet delivering the expected revenue.
According to the article, Ouest-France is the leading French newspaper by circulation, with nearly 600,000 copies daily across print and digital in 2025. Its website reportedly recorded 179.3 million visits in September 2026, or nearly 6 million visits per day.
Even so, the group has not yet achieved financial balance.
Management is relying on artificial intelligence to reduce costs and transform the organization, alongside a job-cut plan. The author of the opinion section argues this industrial approach to content production risks a dead end and criticizes a decline in editorial quality.
The piece also questions the newspaper’s closeness to government policies given its public subsidies, and asks how long the group can sustain deficits before rethinking its model. If losses remain at the 2025 level, the group could exhaust its equity around 2030, according to the article.
