e& Agrees to Sell Its Entire Vodafone Stake for 5.95 Billion Dollars, Unlocking a 1.3 Billion Dollar Net Cash Return
UAE technology and telecommunications group e& has signed a binding agreement to sell its entire shareholding in Vodafone Group for approximately 21.8 billion dirhams, equivalent to 5.95 billion dollars inclusive of Vodafone’s final dividend, ending a four-year strategic investment in the British telecommunications company, the group announced on Friday.
The buyer is Vega, an acquisition vehicle owned by the family group of French telecommunications entrepreneur Xavier Niel, the founder of Iliad. The transaction covers 3,944,743,685 Vodafone shares, about 16.21 percent of the company’s issued share capital and 17.13 percent of its voting rights.
e& will receive approximately 110.5 pence per share in cash from the buyer and will separately receive Vodafone’s final dividend for the 2026 financial year of 2.02 pence per share on 30 July, taking the total value to about 112.5 pence per share, or roughly 4.44 billion pounds for the block, our calculation. The cash price is about 13 percent above Vodafone’s closing price of 97.76 pence on Thursday, and the total value about 15 percent above it, Reuters reported.
e& said the transaction is expected to deliver a net cash return of approximately 4.7 billion dirhams, about 1.3 billion dollars, describing the exit as the outcome of a comprehensive review of its international investment portfolio that will sharpen the group’s focus on its core businesses. Set against the announced proceeds, the disclosed return equals about 27.5 percent of the remaining 17.1 billion dirhams the two figures imply was netted off, our calculation. e& does not break that figure down, and the return should not be read as an accounting disposal gain, since the disclosure makes no adjustment for purchase timing, financing costs, taxes, expenses or dividends received over the holding period.
e& first invested in Vodafone in May 2022, buying about 2.766 billion shares, then 9.8 percent of the company, for around 4.4 billion dollars, and lifted its ownership to 14 percent by February 2023. Its share count was unchanged from there, but Vodafone’s buybacks lifted the holding above 17 percent by February 2026, according to e&’s disclosures to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange.
As part of the transaction, the relationship agreement signed in May 2023, which positioned e& as a cornerstone shareholder and framed commercial cooperation across enterprise services, procurement and technology, has been terminated. Hatem Dowidar, who joined Vodafone’s board as a non-executive director in February 2024 under that agreement, has resigned with immediate effect, Vodafone said. e& said it remains open to exploring future commercial cooperation where it creates value for both groups.
The shares will be transferred through simultaneous off-market block trades to three financial institutions, which will hold them until Vega completes the regulatory requirements associated with acquiring the position. e& expects to receive the proceeds once the transfer to the institutions is completed, with completion expected in the near future, while Vega has said physical settlement of its position is expected by the end of the year.
Vega said it intends to be a committed, long-term minority shareholder and does not intend to make an offer for Vodafone’s entire share capital, and no governance arrangements were included in the purchase. The investment follows Vodafone’s simplification under chief executive Margherita Della Valle, including exits from Spain and Italy, the agreed sale of its VodafoneZiggo stake, and full ownership of its British business after agreeing in May to buy CK Hutchison’s remaining 49 percent of VodafoneThree for 4.3 billion pounds. Vodafone shares rose about 12 percent to as high as 110 pence in early London trading on Friday, Reuters reported.
Why it matters: For e&, the deal converts a strategic minority stake into nearly 6 billion dollars of liquidity and a disclosed 1.3 billion dollar net cash return, materially strengthening the group’s financial flexibility, though it has not yet announced how the proceeds will be allocated. For the wider Gulf, this is one of the largest monetisations of an overseas strategic stake by a regional group, and an exit at a premium after four years underlines the increasingly disciplined management of Gulf corporates’ international portfolios.
Outlook: The markers are completion of the block trades and receipt of proceeds, Vega’s regulatory clearances ahead of its expected year-end settlement, the 30 July dividend payment, and any announcement from e& on how the 21.8 billion dirhams will be deployed.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Shares sold | 3,944,743,685 |
| Share of issued capital | About 16.21% |
| Share of voting rights | About 17.13% |
| Cash from Vega | 110.5 pence per share |
| Final FY26 dividend | 2.02 pence per share, 30 July |
| Total value per share | About 112.5 pence |
| Total proceeds | 21.8bn dirhams, 5.95bn dollars |
| Disclosed net cash return | 4.7bn dirhams, about 1.3bn dollars |
Sources: e&; Vodafone; Vega; Reuters.
