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Vodafone acknowledged on Friday that it had entered into talks with Liberty Global over a possible strategic acquisition of Liberty Global’s European assets
Vodafone is weighing up a potential €14 billion deal with Liberty Global, that would see it acquire large portions of the business.
"Vodafone confirms that it is in early stage discussions with Liberty Global regarding the potential acquisition of certain overlapping continental European assets owned by Liberty Global. There is no certainty that any transaction will be agreed, nor as to the terms, timing or form of any transaction," read a Vodafone statement.
Vodafone has been quick to quash speculation of a potential merger, insisting that it would only consider a Vodafone buy out of Liberty Global assets.
"Vodafone is not in discussion with Liberty Global regarding a combination of both companies," the statement continued.
Vodafone Group’s share price spiked by 3% to £2.203 on Friday afternoon, following the announcement, but had settled back down to £2.140 by the time markets opened again on Monday morning. Liberty Global’s share price also jumped to $38.36 on the New York stock exchange, as markets welcomed the potential acquisition as good news for both parties.
Liberty Group owns swathes of telecoms infrastructure across Europe. A report in the Financial Times suggested that Vodafone was interested in purchasing Liberty Group’s cable infrastructure in Germany, as well as numerous business units in Eastern Europe. The addition would allow Vodafone to bolster its footprint in Europe by taking on Liberty Global’s extensive portfolio of fixed line customers.
Both companies have been involved in a flurry of M&A activity in recent months, as operators across the industry look to consolidate their positions, wherever they can. Vodafone has recently merged its Indian operations with its key competitor, Idea Cellular. Liberty Global sold its operations in Austria to Deutsche Telekom in December 2017.
