Investment Narrative Shifts; Any Changes Will Take Time

Research evidence excerpt

Investment Narrative Shifts; Any Changes Will Take Time

IdeaMWhat are the necessary regulatory approvals? UK government review. Aside

from regulatory checks, a UK national security review is possible (similar to the

review that e& underwent in 2024) under the NS&I Act, which gives the government

the right to evaluate and intervene in transactions with regards to national security

matters (e.g. critical infrastructure). Antitrust – some geographic overlap. As

outlined in our recent research, there is limited overlap between the footprints of

Vodafone Group and Vega, other than in Ireland (Mr Niel holds a stake in eir, while

Vodafone is one of the three mobile operators).

To what extent can Mr Niel gain influence at Vodafone Group? A key question is

to what extent Mr Niel and his team (led by CEO Thomas Reynaud) will be involved

in operations / management at Vodafone Group – see Mr Niel's comment in our

previous report here. According a subsequent FT article (here), quoting sources

close to Mr Niel, doing more to maximise the potential of its brand with consumers

and exploiting its global reach could be part of his thinking. Another source cited in

the article noted that they expect Mr Niel to look to push consolidation in the

German mobile market (currently 4 players), similar to what Vodafone did in the UK.

Vodafone declined to comment on the article; the company has acknowledged e&'s

stake purchase (here). Representatives for Mr Niel also declined to comment on the

article. Mr Niel has been a Vodafone shareholder before, building a 2.5% stake back

in 2022, and had limited influence on Vodafone Group strategy. e& previously held

one seat on the Vodafone Board, and it remains unclear whether this seat will