French cableco Numericable has signed an agreement to acquire Omer Telecom, the holding company which operates as Virgin Mobile France, for €325m (US$443.7m). Numericable, owned by Luxembourg-based holding Altice, entered exclusive negotiations in…
French cableco Numericable has signed an agreement to acquire Omer Telecom, the holding company which operates as Virgin Mobile France, for €325m (US$443.7m).
Numericable, owned by Luxembourg-based holding Altice, entered exclusive negotiations in mid-May with Virgin Mobile’s owners, which include UK telecoms retailer Carphone Warehouse, the Virgin Group and management.
The sale of Virgin Mobile, France’s largest MVNO with about 1.7 million subscribers, is subject to the approval of the French Competition Authority.
Vivendi, the parent of local mobile operator SFR which is in the process of being sold to Numericable, will contribute €200m (US$273m) of the €325m owed. Altice has said Vivendi’s participation will enhance the value of its minority stake in Numericable post-merger.
Carphone owns 46% of Omer, the Virgin Group 46% and management 8%.
DC Advisory reportedly advised Virgin Mobile on the transaction.
The sale of the French MVNO comes hot on the heels of Carphone agreeing a £3.8bn (US$6.4bn) merger with British electronics retailer Dixons. The deal recently received approval from the European Commission.
