The CEO of Ono anticipates that the Spanish cableco will be in a much stronger position to grow through acquisitions once it has floated successfully.
Speaking to TelecomFinance, Rosalia Portela said that Ono’s capital structure did not previously…
The CEO of Ono anticipates that the Spanish cableco will be in a much stronger position to grow through acquisitions once it has floated successfully.
Speaking to TelecomFinance, Rosalia Portela said that Ono’s capital structure did not previously allow it to consider M&A opportunities.
This is why it never looked into acquiring Yoigo, the Spanish mobile operator owned by TeliaSonera that was put up for sale last year in a process later abandoned.
But the situation will change following the anticipated listing later this year, which will result in Ono being much more open to deals.
“Before we can think about consolidation we need a more flexible capital structure, and that’s why the IPO is so relevant,” Portela said.
The CEO noted that three assets in the north of Spain are currently owned or part-owned by private equity, namely CVC-held R Cable, Carlyle’s Telecable, and Euskatel, whose owners include PE firms Investindustrial and Trilantic Capital.
Ono recently decided to go ahead with IPO preparations, despite an unconfirmed €6.9bn offer from UK mobile operator Vodafone. A media report claimed last week that Ono had appointed Deutsche Bank and JP Morgan to advise on the listing.
But a source subsequently strongly rejected the report, telling TelecomFinance that “no one has been appointed regardless what is being filtered in the press.” A decision would be made in the coming three weeks, the source added, speaking late last week.
An Ono shareholder meeting is set to take place on 13 March, and more details on the IPO process are expected to emerge following that meeting.
Ono CEO Portela also noted that the cableco owned unused LTE spectrum, which it might decide to sell. The 20 MHz in the 2.6 GHz band were acquired in 2011 for €13.3m.
