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