Key facts
- E& Group will sell its entire 16.21% stake in Vodafone.
- The buyer is a company owned by the family group of French telecoms tycoon Xavier Niel.
- The sale price is $5.95 billion, or 112.5 pence per share.
- E& will relinquish control and influence over Vodafone's board and management.
- The transaction is projected to yield a net cash return of about $1.3 billion for E&.
UAE telecoms operator E& Group announced on Friday that it will sell its entire 16.21% stake in Vodafone to a company owned by the family group of French telecoms tycoon Xavier Niel for $5.95 billion. The sale price is set at 112.5 pence per share. Vodafone's shares closed at 97.76 pence in the previous trading session. Following the transaction, E& will no longer exert control or influence over Vodafone's board or management, and its board representative has stepped down as a non-executive director. E& stated that the divestment is expected to result in a net cash return of approximately $1.3 billion.