The EU’s competition chief has urged European companies to pursue more cross-border takeovers inside the bloc to ward off predatory foreign buyers, emphasising in particular the potential for consolidation in the telecoms markets, reported The Financial Times.
Margrethe Vestager, who is serving a second term as competition commissioner, blocked two major mobile telecoms mergers in Denmark and the UK during her first term which deterred companies from pursuing in-market consolidation in the sector.
However, speaking to the Financial Times during a panel discussion at a trade conference, Ms Vestager said: “In a single market we would not consider [it] to be controversial if European businesses consolidate.
“In some sectors there is indeed room for cross-border consolidation, the telco sector in particular, because here we still have very national markets.” She added that “it would be good to have more pan-European players. We also have a few big ones like they have in the US. Instead of only thinking about consolidating within the national market then [we can have] a more pan-European approach. We have seen a few mergers in that direction, but not many.”
Ms Vestager’s remarks come less than a month after the General Court in Luxembourg dealt a blow to the commission by annulling its decision to block the £10.25 billion (US$12.72 billion) sale of O2 to Three in 2016. That ruling, which is likely to be appealed, has been welcomed as a potential catalyst for a consolidation frenzy.
Full Content: Financial Times
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