在2024年3月15日,沃達豐歐洲有限公司、Swisscom Italia S.R.L.、沃達豐和Swisscom AG簽訂了針對沃達豐意大利業務出售的買賣協議。
考慮金額爲80億歐元,基於無債務和無現金的基礎上,需根據慣常的關閉調整進行調整。
該交易需獲得某些慣常的監管批准。截止本公告發布之日,該交易已獲得意大利部長會議主席(黃金權力立法)、瑞士競爭委員會和歐盟委員會競爭總局在外國補貼條例下的無條件批准,意大利通訊管理局(Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni, AGCOM)也已批准,但仍需獲得意大利競爭管理局(Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato)的批准以及根據《立法法令第259/2003號》第64條有關頻率使用權轉讓的授權。
沃達豐
沃達豐歐洲b.V.爲此類交易提供了通常的擔保,包括能力和所有權方面的擔保,並從Swisscom Italia S.r.l.和Swisscom AG處獲得了相應的擔保。
Vodafone
Europe BV ("VEBV") received assessments totalling €267
million of tax and interest from the Dutch tax authorities, who
challenged the application of the arm's length principle in
relation to various intra-group financing transactions. VEBV
entered into a guarantee for the full value of the assessments
issued. VEBV appealed against these assessments to the District
Court of the Hague where a hearing was held in March 2023. The
District Court issued its judgement in July 2023, upholding VEBV's
appeal in relation to the majority of issues and requiring the
Dutch tax authorities to significantly reduce its assessments. VEBV
and the Dutch tax authorities have since appealed the judgement.
The appeal hearing is currently scheduled to take place on 4
February 2025. The Vodafone group continues to believe it has
robust defences but has recorded a provision of €2400萬
for tax and interest, reflecting its current view of the probable
financial outflow required to fully resolve the issue and has
reduced the guarantee to the same value.
3. Germany:
price increase class action
In
November 2023, the Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (Federation of
German Consumer Organisations) initiated a class action against
Vodafone Germany in the Hamm Higher Regional Court. Vodafone
Germany implemented price increases of €5 per month for fixed
lines services in 2023 in response to higher costs. The claim
alleges that terms regarding price increases in the consumer
contracts entered into by Vodafone Germany's customers up until
August 2023 are invalid under German civil law and seeks
reimbursement of the additional charges plus interest. Customers
must enter their details onto the register of collective actions on
the Federal Office of Justice website in order to participate in
the claim. The register opened on 23 April 2024. Whilst the
Vodafone group intends to defend the claim, it is not able to
determine the likelihood or estimate the amount of any possible
financial loss at this early stage of the proceedings.
Vodacom
South Africa is challenging the SCA's judgement and order on
various grounds including, but not limited to the SCA ignoring the
evidence placed before it on the computation of the quantum of
compensation payable to Mr Makate, and the SCA issuing orders that
are incapable of implemented and enforced. The CEO's determination
in 2019 amounted to R4700萬 (€240萬). The minority
judgement of the SCA raised Mr Makate's compensation to an amount
payable of R18600萬 (€960萬). The value of the
compensation amount for Mr Makate, as per the SCA's majority
judgement and order, would at a minimum be R290億 (€1.5
billion). Mr Makate, in his recent submissions to the
Constitutional Court, has stated that his request is for
compensation in the capital amount of R94億 (€493
million), plus interest from 18 January 2019. Consequently, the
range of the possible compensation outcomes in this matter is very
wide. The amount ultimately payable to Mr Makate is uncertain and
will depend on the success of Vodacom South Africa's appeal against
the judgement and order of the SCA, on the merits of the case. The
Vodafone group is continuing to challenge the level of compensation
payable to Mr Makate and a provision immaterial to the financial
statements has been recorded.
9. UK:
Mr Justin Gutmann v Vodafone Limited and
Vodafone