DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ UK regulator refers Vodafone's merger with Three for in-depth competition probe
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The U.K. competition regulator on Thursday referred the proposed merger between Vodafone and CK Hutchison's Three mobile network to an in-depth investigation. The CMA has given itself a deadline of Sept. 18 to complete the in-depth probe, also known as a phase 2 investigation. The CMA has previously said the deal could lead to customers facing higher prices and reduced quality, a lessening of competition in the U.K. mobile market. Announced last year, Vodafone and CK Hutchison's transaction would merge the two brands' U.K. businesses, giving Vodafone a 51% controlling stake and leaving CK Hutchison with the minority interest. Vodafone and Three reiterated that "there will be no change to each operator's pricing strategy as a result of the merger."

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, CK Hutchison Organizations: Vodafone, CK, Markets Authority, CMA, Regulators, CK Hutchison Locations: London, British, United Kingdom

LONDON (AP) — British cellphone company Vodafone confirmed Friday that it is selling its Italian business to Switzerland’s Swisscom for 8 billion euros ($8.7 billion) and will hand back half of the proceeds to its shareholders through the buyback of company shares. Swisscom, a telecoms operator, will pay in cash that it will finance through new debt. "Fastweb and Vodafone Italia are an ideal fit to create high added value for all stakeholders." Swisscom will pay annual initial charges of 350 million euros, which is expected to decrease over time. ”Its refreshed strategy also has seen it seek to merge its U.K. business with Three U.K. to create Britain’s biggest mobile phone network worth around 15 billion pounds ($19 billion).

Persons: Swisscom, Christoph Aeschlimann, Margherita Della Valle, “, ”, Sophie Lund, Yates, stockbrokers Hargreaves Lansdown Organizations: Vodafone, Fastweb, Vodafone Italia Locations: British, Italy, Hungary, Ghana, London, Zurich

☆ UK opens antitrust probe into Vodafone merger with CK Hutchison's Three mobile network
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A pedestrian walks past a Vodafone store in central London on May 16, 2023. British mobile giant Vodafone is to axe 11,000 jobs over three years in the latest cull to hit the tech sector, as new boss Margherita Della Valle slammed recent performance. Britain's competition watchdog on Friday said it is opening an investigation into the proposed merger between Vodafone and the Three UK mobile network owned by CK Hutchison . The initial probe will look at whether the deal will lead to a "substantial lessening of competition," according to the U.K. Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). "The CMA will assess how this tie-up between rival networks could impact competition before deciding next steps."

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, CK Hutchison, Sarah Cardell Organizations: Vodafone, CK, U.K, Competition, Markets Authority, CMA Locations: London, British

☆ Vodafone reports Q2 improvement after Germany returns to growth
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Telecoms company Vodafone (VOD.L) reported an acceleration in service revenue in the second quarter on Tuesday after Germany, its biggest market, returned to growth. It reported a 4.2% rise in group service revenue for the six months to the end of September, with both Europe and Africa up, and 0.3% higher adjusted core earnings, a rise limited by higher energy costs. Chief Executive Margherita Della Valle said Vodafone had delivered improved revenue growth in nearly all of its markets in the first half of its financial year. "Our focus on customers and simplifying our business is beginning to bear fruit, although much more needs to be done," she said. ($1 = 0.9346 euros)Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, Paul Sandle, Kate Holton Organizations: Vodafone, British, Thomson Locations: Germany, Europe, Africa

☆ Vodafone to sell Spanish arm to Zegona for $5.30 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Vodafone (VOD.L) will sell its struggling Spanish business to Zegona Communications (ZEG.L) for 5 billion euros ($5.30 billion), it said on Tuesday, in the British firm's second major transaction this year. Vodafone said it would receive at least 4.1 billion euros in cash. It will also provide 900 million euros in financing in the form of preference shares redeemable no later than six years after closing. Vodafone ranks third in Spanish telecoms after Telefonica and Orange. Zegona's Chairman and CEO Eamonn O'Hare said he was "very excited" about the opportunity to return to the Spanish telecomsmarket.

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, Britain's, Della Valle, Eamonn O'Hare, Yadarisa, Paul Sandle, Subhranshu Sahu, Kate Holton Organizations: Vodafone, Zegona Communications, Vodafone's, Telefonica, British, Zegona's, Thomson Locations: British, Spain, Orange, Spanish, Telecable, Bengaluru, London

☆ Vodafone will struggle to get clean exit in Spain
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Toby Melville Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 30 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Vodafone’s (VOD.L) boss Margherita Della Valle is cleaning up the sprawling 21 billion pound telecom group, but it’s a tough job. A potentially messy exit in Spain illustrates the point. Della Valle lacks an obvious partner in the country: local giant Telefónica (TEF.MC) is too big, while rivals Orange (ORAN.PA) and MásMóvil are merging with one another. As a result, Vodafone may have found itself a potentially problematic counterparty for the Spanish business, which Della Valle has put under strategic review. Investors might be reassured that Della Valle is making things happen, but a clean break in Spain looks increasingly unlikely.

Persons: Toby Melville, Margherita Della Valle, Della Valle, Eamonn O’Hare, Expansión, Zegona, Pamela Barbaglia, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto Organizations: Vodafone, REUTERS, Reuters, Orange, Zegona Communications, Virgin Media, Bloomberg, Deutsche Bank, ING, Reuters Graphics Reuters, X, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Spain

☆ Apollo, JB Capital preparing bid for Vodafone's Spanish unit, Expansion says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Nacho Doce/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsMADRID, Oct 9 (Reuters) - U.S.-based buyout fund Apollo Global Management is readying a bid with local fund JB Capital for the Spanish unit of telecom giant Vodafone (VOD.L), the Expansion newspaper reported on Monday citing unidentified sources with knowledge of the matter. The news about a potential bid comes three weeks after British telecom investment company Zegona (ZEG.L) said it was in talks with Vodafone to buy the Spanish unit. Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle launched a strategic review of the Spanish unit earlier this year. Vodafone is one of the three largest telecom operators in Spain together with Telefonica (TEF.MC) and the local unit of France's Orange (ORAN.PA). Apollo and JB Capital did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Nacho, Margherita Della Valle, Inti Landauro, Jason Neely Organizations: Vodafone, Congress, REUTERS, Rights, Apollo Global Management, JB Capital, Spanish, Telefonica, Thomson Locations: Barcelona, Spain, Rights MADRID

☆ Mount Etna eruption disrupts Sicily's troubled Catania airport
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Mount Etna, Europe's most active volcano, lights up the night sky with eruptions as seen from Rocca Della Valle, Italy, August 13, 2023. Etna Walk/Marco Restivo/ Handout via REUTERSCATANIA, Sicily, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Flights serving the eastern Sicilian city of Catania were halted on Monday after an eruption from nearby Mount Etna, local authorities said, bringing fresh travel woe to the crisis-plagued Italian airport. The 3,330 metre (10,925 ft) high volcano burst into action overnight, firing lava and ash high over the Mediterranean island. Flights to and from Catania, a popular tourist destination, would be suspended until 8:00 p.m. (1800 GMT), the airport said on Twitter. The latest cancellations at Catania airport, which attracts more arrivals than the island's capital, Palermo, came a month after a fire at a terminal building led to weeks of disruptions for passengers.

Persons: Rocca Della Valle, Marco Restivo, Enrico Trantino, Crispian Balmer, Conor Humphries Organizations: REUTERS, Twitter, Catania, Thomson Locations: Etna, Italy, Handout, REUTERS CATANIA, Sicily, Sicilian, Catania, Mount Etna, Palermo

☆ Vodafone boosted by 1&1 5G network deal in Germany
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The headquarters of Vodafone Germany are pictured in Duesseldorf September 12, 2013. Shares in British company Vodafone rose 3% in London and 1&1 (1U1.DE) soared 15%, set for its biggest one-day gain since 2008. 1&1, the mobile phone operation of German internet provider United Internet (UTDI.DE), is building a fourth mobile network. The deal knocked shares in Telefonica Deutschland (O2Dn.DE), as 1&1 teamed up with its competitor Vodafone. Vodafone said in its statement on Wednesday that the commercial agreement with 1&1 was for 18 years, and would start to deliver the 5G coverage to 1&1 customers from the second half of 2024.

Persons: Ina Fassbender, Margherita Della Valle, Sarah Young, Danilo Masoni, Hakan Ersen Organizations: Vodafone, REUTERS, United, Telefonica Deutschland, Telefonica, Thomson Locations: Vodafone Germany, Germany, London, Telefonica Deutschland's, Madrid

☆ Vodafone takes 'first steps' in turnaround with top-line improvement
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, July 24 (Reuters) - Vodafone (VOD.L) reported better top-line growth on Monday, driven by higher prices in Britain and improvements in Germany, Italy and Spain, marking a positive start for new Chief Executive Margherita Della Valle's turnaround plan. She said on Monday that organic service revenue had improved "across almost all of our markets", as it reported a 3.7% first-quarter rise. The decline in service revenue in Germany more than halved quarter-on-quarter to 1.3%, as price rises partially offset the impact of customer losses over the last 18 months. Growth in service revenue in Britain, where Vodafone announced the merger of its operation with Hutchison's rival network Three last month, accelerated to 5.7%, boosted by strong growth in consumer and price increases. In Italy, improved demand from businesses helped reduce the service revenue decline to 1.6%, from 2.7% in the previous quarter, it said, while Spain saw a smaller improvement to a decline of 3.0% from 3.7%.

Persons: Margherita Della Valle's, Luka Mucic, Della Valle, We've, Ahmed Essam, Paul Sandle, Kate Holton, Sharon Singleton Organizations: Vodafone, SAP, Thomson Locations: Britain, Germany, Italy, Spain

☆ Tod's creative director Walter Chiapponi to step down
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] The logo of Tod's is seen in a shop in downtown Rome, Italy February 10, 2016. REUTERS/Tony Gentile/File PhotoMILAN, July 12 (Reuters) - Italian luxury fashion group Tod's (TOD.MI) said on Wednesday that creative director Walter Chiapponi was leaving the company "by mutual agreement" after four years. Chiapponi will present his last Tod's Spring Summer 2024 women's collection in September at the Milan Fashion Week, the group said in a statement. Tod's did not name a replacement but said that a "new creative direction" would be announced in the coming months. The designer's departure was first reported by Women's Wear Daily (WWD) on Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.

Persons: Tony Gentile, MILAN, Walter Chiapponi, Chiapponi, Tod's, Women's, Walter, Diego Della Valle, Fay, Hogan, Roger Vivier, Elisa Anzolin, Keith Weir Organizations: REUTERS, Milan, Tod's, Thomson Locations: Rome, Italy

☆ Vodafone hires Morgan Stanley to weigh options for its Spanish unit - Expansion
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

MADRID, June 21 (Reuters) - Britain telecoms company Vodafone (VOD.L) has hired investment bank Morgan Stanley to evaluate the options for its Spanish unit, Spanish newspaper Expansion reported on Wednesday citing unidentified market sources. The company has started a strategic review on the future of its Spanish unit and its CEO Margherita Della Valle said last month the company's management is open to "structural change". A Vodafone spokesperson in Madrid declined to comment and Morgan Stanley did not immediately return a telephone call seeking comment. Reporting by Inti Landauro, Editing by Louise HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Margherita Della Valle, Inti Landauro, Louise Heavens Organizations: Vodafone, Spanish, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Britain, Madrid

[1/2] Vodafone Group CEO Margherita Della Valle poses in this undated handout picture obtained by Reuters on May 16, 2023. "For Vodafone this transaction is a game changer in our home market," Della Valle, a 29-year company veteran, told reporters. That is likely to take time, but Kester Mann, a director at CCS Insight, said the British announcement would give Della Valle a boost. "She has shown clear intent to make changes at Vodafone as she bids to turn the embattled company's performance around," he said. "Securing approval for a tie-up with (Hutchison's) Three would be a major boost to her early tenure."

Persons: Margherita Della Valle, Della Valle, CK Hutchison, Nick Read, Kester Mann, Kate Holton, Sinead Cruise, Emelia Sithole Organizations: Vodafone, Reuters, Handout, REUTERS, HK, CCS Insight, Thomson Locations: Britain, Hong Kong, Germany, Spain, Italy, British

Vodafone and CK Hutchison, which owns the Three UK mobile network, agreed to merge their U.K. businesses, following talks that have been ongoing since last year, the companies said Wednesday. Vodafone will own 51% of the combined business, leaving CK Hutchison the minority stake. "This long-awaited mega merger represents the biggest shake-up in the UK mobile market for over a decade," Kester Mann, director for consumer and connectivity at CCS Insight said in emailed comments. Current Vodafone UK CEO Ahmed Essam will lead the new enterprise, while the present Three UK Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Darren Purkis will assume the CFO position at the merged business. BT acquired EE in 2016, while Telefonica and Liberty Global launched Virgin Media O2 in 2021.

Persons: CK Hutchison, Kester Mann, Ahmed Essam, Darren Purkis, Nick Read, Margherita Della Valle Organizations: Vodafone, CK, CK Hutchison, Insight, BT, Virgin Media O2, EE, O2, Telefonica, Liberty Global, Markets Authority, CMA, Activision Blizzard

☆ Telco tycoons’ UK bets look stuck underwater
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Pamela Barbaglia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Set those complications aside, however, and his stake-building may have cost about 4.2 billion pounds overall since 2021. That’s according to Breakingviews calculations which use the share price from the day before each stake increase became public. The holding is now worth 3.6 billion pounds, implying a nearly 560 million pound or 13% loss. That’s mild compared with some of Vodafone’s investors. But UK consolidation would hardly move the needle as Vodafone is haggling to retain control of the merged entity.

Within weeks, Della Valle gave them a stark assessment of the problems Vodafone faces. Complicating matters is an investor base with conflicting demands, concerns about Vodafone's dividend outlook and a workforce reeling from the deep job cuts. While many observers in and outside the company had expected a fresh face, Della Valle won over the board. Vodafone's shares are trading at lows last seen in 2002, largely due to a cut to free cash flow forecasts. That may not sit well with Vodafone's other key investors - French telecoms billionaire Xavier Niel, who competes with it in Italy, and Liberty Global, its partner in the Netherlands.

☆ BT jobs: Company will shed as many as 55,000 workers by 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

London CNN —BT Group is planning to slash up to 55,000 jobs in the next five to seven years as it makes greater use of technology to cut costs and simplify its business. The UK telecom company said Thursday that its total workforce would fall to between 75,000 and 90,000 by 2028-2030, from 130,000 at present. “New BT Group will be a leaner business with a brighter future.”Earlier this week, Vodafone (VOD), once the world’s biggest mobile telecom group, said it would cut 11,000 jobs, or about 11% of its workforce, over three years. The company also unveiled a turnaround plan to revive its ailing fortunes under new CEO Margherita Della Valle. Its adjusted earnings rose 5% to £7.9 billion ($9.8 billion).

The job cuts are the biggest in the history of Vodafone, which employs 90,000 people directly across Europe and Africa. Della Valle was given a mandate to turn Vodafone around when she permanently took on the top job from the role of CFO last month. Della Valle started cutting jobs when she took the helm at the start of the year, targeting Vodafone's central operations in London. Della Valle said the European telecoms market had long delivered a poor return on the capital invested in networks, but Vodafone's relative performance had worsened over time. "It will take as long as it takes to get a good deal," Della Valle told reporters.

☆ Vodafone's new boss to cut 11,000 jobs as cash flow to fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Della Valle said Germany, Vodafone's biggest market, was underperforming, while Spain, which has suffered cut-throat competition in recent years, was under strategic review. Underscoring the pressures on the business, Vodafone said it would generate 3.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion) of cash this financial year, down from 4.8 billion euros in the year to end-March 2023. Analysts had expected 3.6 billion euros. For the year to end-March, pressures in Germany and higher energy costs resulted in a 1.3% decline in Vodafone's group core earnings to 14.7 billion euros, missing its own guidance. Vodafone has already started to cut jobs in its big markets, shedding 1,000 in Italy earlier this year, while a media report said it was looking to cut around 1,300 in Germany.

☆ Vodafone plans 11,000 job cuts in the UK and worldwide
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

London CNN —Vodafone said Tuesday it would cut 11,000 jobs over three years, as the telecoms company unveiled a turnaround plan to revive its fortunes following years of poor performance. The job cuts would affect the firm’s UK headquarters and operations in other countries, Vodafone added in a statement. Within a challenging sector, Vodafone’s performance relative to peers had “worsened over time,” Della Valle said in a video posted to the company’s website. Shares in Vodafone have fallen 28% over the past year. Under its turnaround plan, Vodafone would invest more in its customer experience and also direct more resources towards Vodafone Business, serving corporate clients, which was growing in nearly all the company’s European markets.

☆ Vodafone shares drop 4% after record 11,000 jobs cut as CEO says telco 'must change'
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Vodafone announced plans to cut 11,000 jobs as part of a turnaround plan from the company's newly-appointed CEO Margherita Della Valle. Vodafone shares fell as much as 4% on Tuesday, after the British telecommunications firm announced plans to slash a record number of jobs and forecast a drop in free cash flow. To consistently deliver, Vodafone must change," recently appointed CEO Margherita Della Valle said in a candid statement on Tuesday. Vodafone reported 45.7 billion euros ($49.7 billion) in revenues for its fiscal year ended March 31, 2023, roughly unchanged versus the previous year. "What is going to change is the level of ambition, speed, [and] decisiveness of execution," Della Valle said in a recorded video on Tuesday.

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Horizon Therapeutics, Capital One, RH, Home Depot and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Western Alliance Bancorp — Western Alliance shares jumped 3.6% after Bank of America reinstated coverage on the stock with a buy rating. Home Depot , Lowe's — Shares of home improvement retailers Home Depot and Lowe's lost 1.4% and 1% in midday trading Tuesday. On Monday, Daniel Welch, a director at Seagen, disclosed the sale of 1,864 shares, a stake worth more than $370,000. GE HealthCare — The medtech company's shares gained nearly 3% after Oppenheimer initiated coverage with an outperform rating on Monday. GE HealthCare separated from parent company General Electric earlier in 2023 and began publicly trading on the Nasdaq Jan. 4.

☆ Vodafone to cut 11,000 jobs, sees big drop in cash flow
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 16 (Reuters) - Vodafone's (VOD.L) new boss Margherita Della Valle said she would cut 11,000 jobs over three years to simplify the telecoms group, which she said "must change", as it forecast a 1.5 billion euro decline in free cash flow this year. "Our performance has not been good enough," said Della Valle, who was appointed permanently last month. Vodafone said it would generate about 3.3 billion euros of cash this financial year, compared with 4.8 billion euros in the year to end-March it reported on Tuesday, and around 3.6 billion euros expected by analysts. Growth in Africa and higher handset sales, however, enabled it to eek out a 0.3% rise in revenue to 45.7 billion euros. Vodafone has recently cut jobs in several of its big markets, shedding 1,000 in Italy earlier this year and a media report said it was looking to cut around 1,300 in Germany.

☆ Italian fashion group Tod's sales jump in Q1, beating expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Shoes of Italian luxury shoemaker Tod's are displayed in the window of the company's store in Zurich, Switzerland, April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File PhotoMILAN, May 10 (Reuters) - Sales at Italian fashion group Tod's (TOD.MI) rose by 23% in the first quarter of the year, beating analysts' forecasts thanks to a strong performance in China and despite moderate growth in the Americas. "Considering the good sales trends we experienced in April and the excellent orders' backlog for the winter collections, I'm confident about the group's future results," said Tod's Chairman and CEO Diego Della Valle. In the United States sales rose 6.6%. Tod's CFO said he is confident of achieving the consensus sales figure for the year, currently at 1.1 billion euros.

☆ Vodafone reports Q3 slowdown, hit by Germany, Italy and Spain
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Vodafone (VOD.L) reported a slowdown in its group service revenue growth to 1.8% in the third quarter from 2.5% in the second, driven by declines in Germany, Italy and Spain. The mobile and broadband operator reported a worsening performance in Germany, it biggest market, with a fall of 1.8% in service revenue, reflecting customer losses after it was badly prepared for past changes in legislation. Intense competition in Italy and Spain also continued to hurt, reflected in falls of 3.3% and 8.7% respectively. Britain, however, continued to perform strongly, with a rise of 5.3% driven by good customer growth and price increases. Reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Search resuls for: "Della Valle"

25 mentions found