Vodafone shares on London’s FTSE rally as UAE becomes biggest investor

LONDON: Shares in Vodafone jumped Monday after the British telecoms giant confirmed that state-controlled Emirates Telecommunications Group Company had become its biggest investor.

Vodafone announced in a statement that the group — known also as Etisalat or “e&” and whose majority stake holder is the United Arab Emirates government — had bought 9.8 percent of the British company.

The news sent Vodafone stock rallying 2.4 percent to 120.7 pence around midday on London’s top FTSE 100 shares index, which was flat overall.

The UAE company on Saturday said it had bought 2.766 billion Vodafone shares for $4.4 billion (4.2 billion euros).

It stressed, however, that it would not launch a takeover.

“e& plans to be a long-term and supportive shareholder in Vodafone and is not seeking to exert control or influence the company’s board or management team,” it said in a statement.

“Similarly, e& has no intention to make an offer for Vodafone.”

The group decided to invest in Vodafone to gain “significant exposure” to a global leader in connectivity and digital services, it added.

Vodafone on Monday said it looked “forward to building a long-term relationship with Etisalat”