Vodafone to take full control of UK mobile joint venture with Three Proactive uses images sourced from Shutterstock
Vodafone Group PLC (LSE:VOD) has agreed to buy out its partner in VodafoneThree for £4.3 billion, taking full ownership of the UK mobile and broadband operator less than a year after the joint venture was created.
The FTSE 100 telecoms group said it will use its existing cash resources to acquire the 49% stake held by Hong Kong’s CK Hutchison through a share cancellation, valuing the combined business at £13.85 billion.
The transaction is expected to increase its net debt-to-adjusted earnings ratio by 0.4 times, while generating £700 million in annual cost and capital expenditure savings by the 2030 financial year.
Completion of the deal is subject to regulatory approval under the UK National Security and Investment Act and is expected in the second half of 2026.
After VodafoneThree was formed in May 2025 through the merger of Vodafone UK and Three UK, integration of the two businesses was said to have progressed ahead of schedule, with improvements in network quality and customer retention.
“We have also seen a significant improvement in overall customer experience and loyalty across all of our brands. Most notably, Three has seen a significant improvement in customer retention, and we are already successfully cross selling a broad range of products, including home broadband and Fixed Wireless Access, to the largest UK mobile base,” the company said.
Vodafone said the move to full ownership would allow it to accelerate investment in 5G infrastructure and deliver further efficiencies.