Reportedly, Vodafone Group is contemplating proposals for its Spanish business, which could fetch as much as $4 billion. As first revealed by Bloomberg, potential purchasers, including Apollo Global Management, are showing interest in the operator's Spanish unit. According to sources familiar with the situation, Vodafone has been contacted by other financial and strategic parties interested in acquiring the business. Vodafone has not provided details on the reports. Despite the absence of a formal transfer process, Vodafone has faltered in Spain in recent years, with its revenue falling by 16 percent to $4.6 billion between 2018 and 2022. According to Statista, Vodafone has more than 13 million customers in Spain.
The operator was unable to secure a merger agreement with MásMóvil in the market, with MásMóvil instead committing to a $19 billion merger agreement with Orange. Vodafone has been in a period of transition since the exit of former Chief Executive Nick Read at the end of last year, with Margherita Della Valle assuming the role of interim CEO. In recent months, the provider has been susceptible to a set of unit sales, including a prospective merger with CK Hutchison's Three in the United Kingdom. Vodafone also sold its Hungarian business unit and a substantial interest in its tower company, Vantage Towers, in the past year.
Vodafone's failure to complete the UK merger has added to the company's mounting frustration, with another potential transaction in Portugal to be investigated due to competition concerns. In October of last year, the company agreed to purchase MásMóvil's Portuguese subsidiary Nowo for $163 million. However, as per Advanced Television, the Autoridade da Concorrência (AdC), Portugal's Competition Authority, has initiated a major investigation out of concern that it could threaten market competition in Portugal.
