Iliad Group appears to have given up on its bid to lure Vodafone to join its Italian merger unit, pledging to pursue a go-it-alone strategy after a second merger proposal was rejected.
Iliad said in a statement that Vodafone had rejected a revised proposal to create a 50:50 joint venture that would combine the companies’ respective operations in the country. This second bid followed the first published bid in December 2023.
Although full details of the proposed amendments have not been disclosed, Iliad said that among the terms of the changes was the removal of a call option, which would give it the opportunity to purchase additional shares in the joint venture from Vodafone in the future. It pointed out.
Despite the rejection, Iliad claimed that the deal that was floated would create “the most innovative telecoms challenger for Italy” and that the proposal was “the best way to benefit the struggling Italian market and the telecoms industry”. He claimed that he believed it to be a “business combination.”
Iliad said it would continue to pursue a “unique strategy based on its excellent track record” and pledged to strengthen its operations in the country and “passionately pursue market share gains in all areas.”
Vodafone said mobile world live The company “said in December that it was considering options with several political parties in Italy. We are no longer negotiating with Iliad, but we continue to have discussions with others.”
In November 2023, Swisscom-owned Fastweb was rumored to be another party considering a move for Vodafone Italia.
The offer is not the first time Iliad has attempted to enter the domestic Vodafone sector, having previously had previous takeover offers turned down.
Vodafone’s operations in Italy are part of a group-wide strategic review and have been regularly cited by executives as a challenging market with high levels of competition.