Vodafone and CK Hutchison Prepare For Historic Telecom Merger Worth £15B

• Vodafone Group Plc (NASDAQ: VOD) and CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd (OTC: CKHUY) are close to agreeing to a £15 billion combination of their U.K. telecoms businesses, marking the historic consolidation of the U.K. market to three mobile operators.

• The deal values the equity of the combined group at £9 billion with £6 billion of debt, taking its enterprise value to £15 billion, Financial Times cites familiar sources.

• It will likely come to fruition in May following the appointment of insider Margherita Della Valle as Vodafone CEO. Vodafone dealt with months of uncertainty over a permanent chief.

• The talks to combine have been going on for nearly a year. Vodafone faced pressure to streamline its business by hiving off poorly performing units and pursuing deals in competitive markets, including Spain, Italy, and the U.K.

• Previously the companies stated the deal would have Vodafone own 51% of the combined company and CK Hutchison the remainder. The two companies look to unlock huge cost savings in the first few years after closing by combining Vodafone U.K. with Three U.K., which would pave the way for CK Hutchison to sell its 49% stake to Vodafone.

• Both groups are also preparing to face political opposition on national security concerns.

• Price Action: VOD shares traded lower by 0.96% at $11.85 on the last check Thursday.

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