EU clears Swisscom’s proposed acquisition of Vodafone Italy

Swisscom said it aims to merge Vodafone Italy with Italian telco Fastweb, Swisscom’s subsidiary in Italy

Swiss telco Swisscom confirmed that the European Commission has cleared its proposed acquisition of Italian operator Vodafone Italy.

In a release, Swisscom noted that the completion of the Vodafone Italia transaction is on track as it had already secured the financing for the transaction in May 2024 and has received unconditional approval from both the Presidency of the Council of Ministers in Italy and the Swiss Competition Commission.

However, Swisscom stated that the transaction is still subject to other regulatory approvals, including that of the Italian Competition Authority, which recently announced that it had opened an in-depth investigation to assess the acquisition under Italy’s merger control regulations.

Swisscom said it expected the transaction to be fully completed in the first quarter of 2025.

In March, Swisscom confirmed it had entered into binding agreements with U.K carrier Vodafone Group for the acquisition of 100% of Vodafone Italia for EUR 8 billion ($8.90 billion) on a debt and cash free basis.

Swisscom said it aims to merge Vodafone Italy with Italian telco Fastweb, Swisscom’s subsidiary in Italy.

The combination of Fastweb’s end-to-end managed wireline network and Vodafone’s 5G-based Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) will enable the creation of a converged carrier in the domestic market, Swisscom said, adding that the increased scale, more efficient cost structure and significant annual run-rate synergies of nearly EUR 600 million will enable the combined entity to unlock significant value for all stakeholders and offer innovative converged services.

Swisscom said that the transaction is a key step for the company to achieve its strategic objective of profitable growth in Italy. Through this transaction Swisscom reinforces its presence in the Italian market, where it has been operating since 2007 through Fastweb.

As part of the deal, the combined entity and Vodafone Group will enter into several transitional and long-term service agreements, including a brand license agreement, which permits the use of the Vodafone brand in Italy for up to five years post-closing.

The deal also stipulates that Swisscom and Vodafone Group are exploring a closer commercial relationship to enable collaboration across a broad range of areas, beyond Italy. The key areas of commercial collaboration that Vodafone and Swisscom are exploring include IoT, enterprise services and solutions, procurement, operational shared services and roaming.

Christoph Aeschlimann, CEO of Swisscom, previously said that private and business customers will benefit from the most comprehensive offer after the acquisition.

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