e& has completed the transfer of its 3.94 billion Vodafone shares for AED 21.5 billion in gross proceeds, with a further FY'26 final dividend due on July 30.
e& said it has completed the transfer of its entire Vodafone holding of 3,944,743,685 ordinary shares to BNPP Financial Markets, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, and Société Générale, generating gross cash proceeds of AED 21.5 billion, or about USD 5.84 billion, at roughly 110.5 pence per share. A remaining 2.02 pence per share tied to Vodafone's FY'26 final dividend, equivalent to AED 0.4 billion or USD 0.11 billion, is due on July 30, bringing total consideration to AED 21.9 billion, or about USD 5.95 billion, and a net cash return to e& of AED 4.8 billion, or USD 1.3 billion. The transfer completes the sale process outlined after the binding agreement signed on July 10 with Vega, an acquisition vehicle wholly owned by the Niel family group. Earlier disclosures said Vega's counterparty banks would buy e&'s stake, equal to 16.21% of Vodafone's share capital and 17.13% of its voting rights, under financial instruments used for hedging. Vega also entered into a separate financial instrument tied to an additional 2.74% of Vodafone's voting rights. Subject to customary regulatory approvals and physical settlement of those instruments, Vega previously said it could become entitled by year-end to shares representing about 18.80% of Vodafone's share capital and 19.87% of its voting rights. Vega has described the Vodafone investment as a long-term, strategic minority shareholding and reiterated that it does not intend to make an offer for Vodafone, leaving it bound by Rule 2.8 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers, subject to the reservations in its earlier statement. e& said the disposal reflects a sharpening of its focus on core businesses while crystallizing value from its investment.