en.Wedoany.com Reported - French entrepreneur Xavier Niel's wholly-owned holding company Vega has acquired a 16.2% stake in Vodafone for €5.1 billion, becoming the largest shareholder of the British telecom operator.
In this transaction, Vega signed a binding agreement with Emirates Telecommunications Group (e&) for a total cash consideration of approximately £4.4 billion (approximately €5.1 billion), subject to regulatory approval. Vega has explicitly stated that it has no intention of making a takeover offer for all of Vodafone's shares, but retains exceptions under Rule 2.8 of the UK Takeover Code, allowing it to reconsider its position if another party announces a takeover offer or a significant corporate transaction occurs, and with the consent of Vodafone's board.
e& will sell all of its Vodafone shares, approximately 3.94 billion shares, representing 16.21% of the issued share capital and 17.13% of voting rights. The agreed price is £1.104792 per share, plus a final dividend of €0.023625 per share, scheduled for payment on July 30. In the first phase, some shares will be purchased by financial institutions off-market, with the final transfer of shares expected to be completed by the end of 2026. On the morning of July 10, Vodafone's share price on the London Stock Exchange rose by approximately 12%.
Niel believes that Vodafone is ready to enter a new growth phase, having streamlined its operations to focus more on the European and African markets, with high-quality assets and a strong brand. As a reference investor, Vega will provide operational experience in the telecom sector, helping to achieve sustainable growth and enhance cash flow generation.
The Niel family group's telecom operations already cover 26 countries in Europe and Latin America, serving 139 million customers and employing 45,000 people, with annual revenue of €24 billion and EBITDA after lease exceeding €9 billion. Its portfolio includes operating networks such as Iliad, Salt, Monaco Telecom, Eir, Tele2, and Millicom. This transaction also marks the end of e&'s approximately four-year tenure as a major shareholder of Vodafone, with its representatives having exited the British operator's board.
