Vodafone confirms consolidation talks with European rivals
Vodafone’s chief executive has confirmed he is in talks with rivals in its biggest markets to strike deals with “speed and resolve”, as the telecoms company seeks to respond to calls for a business shake-up from the new activist investor Cevian.
Nick Read, who has argued that the European telecoms industry must consolidate to create more profitable businesses that are more attractive to investors, confirmed the mobile operator was speaking to rivals in the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain.
The chief executive has struck 19 deals since being appointed chief executive three years ago, a tempo that he said he intended to keep up, in his first comments since Europe’s largest activist shareholder was revealed to have taken a stake in Vodafone.
“There has been media speculation about merger and acquisition activity in specific European markets,” said Read. “We feel the UK needs to consolidate to give [us] industrial scale so we can improve returns.
“We are active on a number of fronts and seeing good engagement from our counterparties, which confirms that we have a series of potential opportunities to shape the business with stronger assets in healthier markets and unlock value for our shareholders. We are approaching consolidation with speed and resolve.”
Vodafone has been linked with a string of potential deals including a takeover or merger with Three UK as well as counterparts in Germany, Spain and Italy.
“I look at markets where I see a strong case for consolidation without the need for punitive remedies, Those markets [are] Spain, Italy, the UK and now Portugal. Those four markets are the largest opportunity with a good and solid rationale,” he said. “We are engaged with multiple parties in multiple markets. We will remain
Read more on theguardian.com
