Vodafone slows decline in Europe as new CFO inherits all-too-red balance sheet July 24, 2023 Vodafone has managed to slow revenue declines in vital European markets as CEO Margherita Della Valle looks to turn around the ailing telecoms giant. In what it described as a “better” first quarterly earnings report than what was forecast, Vodafone told markets it had seen a near-6 per cent year on year revenue uplift in [...]
Bosses from Natwest, Shell and Sainsbury’s join PM’s new taskforce to boost growth July 18, 2023 Top bosses from firms including Barclays, Aviva and Shell have joined the Prime Minister’s new business council aimed at supercharging the UK’s growth. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will chair the first business council meeting at No10 today, followed by a glitzy reception for scores of industry bigwigs to celebrate UK enterprise. CEOs including Alison Rose [...]
Vodafone’s £11bn 5G rollout at risk if Three merger is blocked July 10, 2023 Vodafone’s UK boss has warned that the company’s £11bn investment in the UK’s 5G network is at risk if its merger with Three is blocked by the country’s competition regulator. Without the deal, Vodafone “won’t be able to invest as much and we won’t be able to deliver the 5G ambition that’s coming in the [...]
Vodafone and Three hit back at national security concerns June 26, 2023 Vodafone and Three UK have dismissed concerns about their merger threatening national security after facing criticism from MPs and trade bodies over Three’s ties to China. Three UK, owned entirely by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchinson Holdings, has provoked MPs and trade bodies to flag their concerns that the telecoms company’s links to China may endanger [...]
Ousted Vodafone boss picks up more than £4m in pay and bonuses in 2022-23 June 22, 2023 Vodafone’s former boss Nick Read landed more than £4m in salary and bonuses for the year to March, including a £904,000 annual award, despite being ousted at the end of 2022 amid poor performance and swingeing job cuts, it has been revealed. The mobile phone giant’s annual report shows that Read picked up a bumper [...]
Vodafone and Three UK ‘transformative’ merger sparks speculation over CMA approval June 15, 2023 Britain’s competition regulator is set to scrutinise the long-awaited tie-up of Vodafone and Three, announced yesterday. The deal will create the largest mobile network in the UK. Vodafone boss Margherita Della Valle said the merger is “great for customers, great for the country and great for competition”, but commentators warned last night the CMA was [...]
Vodafone and Three announce long-awaited £15bn UK mega merger June 14, 2023 Vodafone and CK Hutchinson, owner of Three, have announced their long-awaited UK merger today. The new group ‘MergeCo’, now the UK’s biggest mobile operator, was revealed this morning and is valued at £15bn, according to Sky News’ Mark Kleinman. MergeCo is 51 per cent Vodafone owned and 49 per cent CK Hutchinson owned. Vodafone chief [...]
Vodafone and Three days away from announcing a UK merger June 7, 2023 Vodafone and the owner of Three network, CK Hutchison, will announce a long-anticipated merger that will see them become the UK’s biggest mobile operator, according to reports. Talks are now in the final stage and an announcement is expected “as soon as Friday or early next week”, according to reports from Reuters. The new company [...]
The Notebook: Talking down the City? Not a bit of it in this newspaper May 25, 2023 One of the delights of this job is the ability to sit down with people from across the Square Mile and ask them very simple questions. One of the perennials is “what keeps you up at night?” The CEOs you’d really want to work for say “people”. That one who said “the fact we’re going [...]
FTSE 100 close: BT and Burberry slump to bottom of London index as easyJet regains ground May 18, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 kicked higher this today, driven by retailers offsetting a sharp sell off in BT shares after it said it will shed 55,000 workers over the next decade. The capital’s premier index jumped 0.25 per cent to 7,742.29 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index, which is more aligned with the health [...]