Vodafone seals 11th hour vote to pass Kabel Deutschland deal

TELECOMS giant Vodafone has secured the support of three quarters of Kabel Deutschland’s shareholders, reaching the level required for a sale to go ahead.

 

Vodafone offered €87 (£73.23) per share, along with a €2.50 dividend to Kabel Deutschland’s investors. Shareholders that have not yet taken Vodafone’s offer will be able to between the 17 and 30 of September, after Vodafone extended the terms of the deal. 

 

Kabel Deutschland, which is the largest cable television provider in Germany, will now be purchased by Vodafone in a €7.7bn deal. 

 

Vodafone, which also sold off its stake in Verizon Wireless for $130bn earlier this week, wants to offer more television and fixed-line services in Germany, its largest European mobile market.

 

The acquisition has been rumoured for some months, but by Tuesday only a fifth of voting shareholders had endorsed the firm’s offer. 

 

US hedge fund Elliot Capital hiked its share in Kabel Deutschland dramatically in the run-up to the agreement, purchasing more than 10 per cent of shares in the firm, becoming the largest shareholder.