Infra Investors, Finance & M&A
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M&AINWIT shareholders look to swoop on slumped Italian towerco — reports
Ardian, Vantage Towers, and other major backers are said to be weighing a take-private deal for INWIT, potentially capitalising on a near-record-low share price amid legal battles with the towerco’s anchor tenants.
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M&ATelefónica, KKR said to initiate sale of Chilean fibre venture
Group reportedly seeking a valuation of up to $2bn for ON*NET Fibra Chile, as JPMorgan and Scotiabank are brought in to coordinate a sale. Move would continue wider restructuring of infra assets at Telefónica, as well as its ongoing exit from Hispam…
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Finance & StrategyCityFibre looks to future as consumer uptake lags
The UK’s largest fibre altnet has reported another period of strong revenue and EBITDA growth, but questions emerge over whether its momentum can be sustained in a fast-changing UK fibre market — and what would change if a counterfactual CityFibre–Substantial Group combination were to follow.
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Public AffairsTelco CEOs press Brussels for certainty as EU works through regulatory changes
Executive Briefing: The debate over Europe’s telecom future intensified in Brussels as executives from United Group, TIM, and MEO challenged policymakers on spectrum rights, merger approvals, cybersecurity mandates, and the continent’s pace of innovation.
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M&ATalkTalk: BT takes the spoils, private equity takes a bath
In-Depth Analysis: The collapse and swift sale of TalkTalk has thrust BT into an unprecedented role as self-appointed industry saviour, ‘safeguarding’ millions of customers while attracting scrutiny from regulators, rivals, and policymakers — and highlighting the shortcomings of TalkTalk’s brief private equity ownership.
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M&ACMA flags substantial competition concerns as nexfibre/Netomnia dealt major blow
In-depth: The UK’s Competition & Markets Authority has delivered a significant setback to nexfibre’s proposed acquisition of Netomnia owner Substantial Group, arguing the deal would materially weaken competition in wholesale broadband markets.
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M&ABT: ‘national champion’ initiates saviour-mode for TalkTalk rescue
‘National champion’ is reportedly preparing to swoop on forlorn TalkTalk as vultures circle overhead, exploring whether its age-old national-interest argument retains traction to mop up millions of stranded subscribers, many already with Openreach, should growing fears materialise that the top-five ISP is running out of financial runway.
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M&ASoftBank closes out $3.1bn DigitalBridge buy to scale in AI infra
Japanese conglomerate completes takeover of international infra investor behind numerous EMEA players such as Netomnia, Freshwave, and GD Towers. Move adds more data centres to SoftBank’s portfolio amidst an aggressive push to expand in the AI sector…
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NetworkNscale’s IPO comes at a precarious time for AI infra companies
UK-domiciled Nscale is reported to be targeting a $30bn valuation after filing for an New York Stock Exchange IPO. But the scale-up’s plans comes as investors reassess appetite for AI infrastructure and concerns around AI safety and sovereignty abound.
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Strategy & ChangeITS promotes collaboration before ‘toolkit’ consolidation in “tough market”
Daren Baythorpe, CEO at UK B2B fibre wholesaler ITS Technology, believes the next phase of telecoms consolidation could look very different from the last. The B2B wholesaler boss argues that investors may increasingly combine complementary infrastructure assets rather than pursue straightforward fibre-network mergers.
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Venturing & InvestmentsGermany sees altnet investment decline amidst financing challenges
Trade organisation BREKO flags 2025 as having the first decrease in annual altnet fibre investment since 2017, marking the latest sign of financial struggle for national fibrecos.
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InterviewFibrus sets sights on cashflow milestone as fibre build nears completion
Cumbria and Northern Ireland altnet passes capex peak, nears build completion, and turns focus more wholly to customer connections. TV add-on will support the push as Fibrus turns capex-intensive infra into cash flow.
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NetworkAfrica’s fibre boom needs a commercial operating model — not just more network
Open-access analysis: Building fibre across Africa is only the first hurdle; monetising capacity is the commercial test. From prepaid township offers to carrier-neutral wholesale platforms, operators need scalable operating models to turn network investment into services and returns. Draws on market evidence and ZIRA Group’s fibre and wholesale experience…
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Finance & StrategyCounting the costs: G.Network reveals the daily economics of running a subscale fibreco
London altnet G.Network’s administration process provides an unusually detailed case study in the realities of operating a subscale fibre provider and the challenges of converting network footprint into sustainable profitability.
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NetworkVodafone welcomes ‘committed funding’ of new German fibre partner
Patrick Drahi’s Altice has finally exited OXG Glasfaser, selling its 50% stake to Société Générale, underscoring Altice’s debt-reduction drive while reinforcing Vodafone’s long-term commitment to the OXG project.
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NetworkMTN advances ‘integrated’ infra vision with data centre JV
Operator firms up data centre joint venture with Emirati data centre investor, with initial plans to build capacity in Nigeria and South Africa. Move sees MTN advance data centre expansion plans as part of Ambition 2030 strategy.
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NetworkTrusted agentic AI: DT and Vodafone automate identity management for sovereign-ready network compliance
Translating dense legal jargon into network access rules with telco-grade IAM (identity and access management) traditionally takes weeks of manual engineering with error risk. Explore how Deutsche Telekom and Vodafone are applying ‘governed intelligence’ and a “Legal LLM” to shrink this critical infrastructure compliance latency to hours, with zero trust and human-in-the-loop, unlocking efficiencies and new high-value sovereign revenue streams.
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Venturing & InvestmentsEurofiber secures €2.2bn financing to fuel fibre expansion
Fibre backbone operator secures funds to support planned cloud and fibre investments, seeking to continue expanding its infrastructure portfolio as rivals advance their own build-out…
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Finance & StrategyVantage Towers: German growth engine sputters on unresolved 1&1, Vodafone disputes
Germany has further cemented its position as Vantage Towers’ leading growth contributor, but is also becoming its biggest source of risk. Amidst existential challenges in other markets, disputes involving both 1&1 and anchor tenant Vodafone Deutschland threaten to cloud otherwise strong operational performance.
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NetworkPolish fibre: Orange, APG get green light for major expansion of JV
EC approves partners’ move to combine fibrecos Światłowód Inwestycje and Nexera into a new entity that aims to pass 3.9m households by 2032, and in doing so significantly expand incumbent Orange’s addressable next-gen broadband platform.