Q3 report show earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by more than 5% to slightly more than €2.5 billion
French billionaire controls the Iliad group and is most famous for shaking up the French and Italian markets by launching no-frills opcos in those countries, under the Free brand. He also owns Play in Poland.
His offer of €11.25 billion for Vodafone Italy was rebuffed, but Niel he has acquired shares in large operator groups, including a 2.5% stake in Vodafone and a 24.18% stake in Millicom International, which offers mobile and fixed services in Latin America. Through investment vehicle Carraun, he is also a majority shareholder in Ireland’s Eir.
Belgian treasure?
Now he he has acquired a 6% stake in Proximus, which is 53.5% owned by the Belgian state through Carraun. The investment firm said in a statement, “As the undisputed domestic leader in fixed and mobile, Proximus has a strong track record among the European incumbents.
“Proximus has also managed to develop a successful international business via its affiliates BICS and Telesign, a unique position among EU incumbents.”
Apparently Carraun is “supportive of the current strategy of Proximus top management, and in particular its ambitious FTTH rollout plan,” and is “willing to cooperate with Proximus management.”
Mutual attraction?
Niel said, “We have built a pan-European telecom group over the past decade, always focusing on providing our customers with best value for money and relying on high quality mobile and fixed network infrastructure.
“I have been attracted by the Belgian market for a long time with its strong economy and where a sound regulatory approach has led to a vibrant telecom sector, as demonstrated in the recently discussed fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) co-investment plan.
“I am very pleased that we now have the opportunity to invest in Proximus and hopefully create ties for the long term. Proximus is an iconic operator whose history is closely associated with Belgium. Over the years, Proximus has managed to adapt to a rapidly changing telecom environment and remain the national leader.
“It would be an honour if we could contribute as a long-term partner to the future evolution of Proximus.”
They certainly got off to a good start. When the news broke, it bumped Proximus’ share price by more than 6%, to €8.55, on the Euronext exchange.
Good news
News of Carraun acquiring the stake in Proximus coincided with Iliad’s Q3 earnings, which showed group revenues for the nine months increased by 10.1%, to €6.8 billion. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by more than 5% to slightly more than €2.5 billion.
Across France, Italy and Poland, Iliad ended September with 47.8 million customers – 38.3 million mobile and 9.5 million fixed broadband users. “These very good results were achieved thanks to our choices in terms of investment and defending our subscribers’ purchasing power,” Iliad’s CEO, Thomas Reynaud, said in a statement.
“They ensure that we can prepare for the future with confidence. Step by step, we are continuing to build a European telecoms group at the cutting edge of connectivity, the cloud and AI.” Niel invested €200 million in AI in September.