Zegona is also in talks with bank for the potential financing of the Vodafone Spain acquisition
U.K.-based investment firm Zegona Communications confirmed it is in discussions with U.K. telecom group Vodafone on a potential acquisition of the carrier’s Spanish business, Zegona Communications said in a statement.
Zegona also revealed it has also been in contact with investment banks for the financing of the potential deal.
“The potential acquisition remains subject to, amongst other things, agreement on final terms with Vodafone, completion of its due diligence exercise and formalization of the funding arrangements. Therefore, there is no certainty that the potential acquisition will proceed,” the investment firm said.
Zegona did not disclose the potential value of the potential transaction.
The investment company is run by Virgin Media veteran Eamonn O’Hare and has a history in the Spanish telecommunications market, having been a major shareholder of Spanish telco Euskaltel prior to its sale to Masmovil in 2021.
Zegona’s confirmation of talks with Vodafone came after Spanish newspaper Expansion reported the investor was interested in acquiring Vodafone’s Spanish unit.
Vodafone was rumored to have hired financial bank Morgan Stanley earlier this year to help it explore options for its Spanish subsidiary.
Vodafone initially launched 5G services in Spain via Non-Standalone (NSA) architecture in 2019 while the telco launched a pre-commercial 5G Standalone (SA) network in June 2021.
In January of 2022, Vodafone Spain announced the start of the initial deployment of 5G coverage via the 700 MHz frequency in 109 municipalities in 30 provinces across the country, after the telco secured spectrum in the 700 MHz band in July 2021.
Vodafone had said that the 5G network in the 700 MHz frequency allows the telco to expand its coverage footprint extensively and offer better coverage inside buildings.
In December 2022, Vodafone secured 400 megahertz of spectrum in the 26GHz band to boost 5G services.
Vodafone had previously said that its 5G network was expected to be available in 2,000 municipalities across Spain by the end of 2023, reaching 65% of the population.
