The combined business is valued up to £3 billion
Today, Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) Business and Daisy Group have announced their intention to merge, creating a new B2B communications and IT giant.
The combined company will have roughly 700,000 customers, annual revenues reaching around £1.4 billion, and an estimated value of £2.5–£3 billion.
VMO2 will own 70% of the merged business and Daisy Group will hold 30%.
The deal is expected to deliver around £600 million in synergies, primarily through “leveraging Virgin Media O2’s own networks, reducing duplicated costs, pursuing cross and up sell opportunities and integrating IT systems”, according to the companies’ press release.
Roughly half of this total cost saving is expected to be delivered within three years.
VMO2 CEO Lutz Schüler described the deal as the “perfect pairing”, saying the deal would create a B2B “powerhouse”.
“For us, it’s a big step forward in our journey to boost B2B growth and provide UK businesses of all sizes with the best digital and connectivity offerings,” he said. “Following completion, the new company will have the scale, talent, focus and infrastructure needed to drive digital transformation and provide business customers with an innovative one-stop shop for all their communications and IT needs. We can’t wait to get started on this next chapter in partnership with Daisy.”
Daisy founder Matthew Riley will serve as Chair of the organisation, while VMO2 Business’s managing director Jo Bertram will handle the day-to-day operations as CEO.
The deal is subject to typical regulatory oversight from the Competition and Markets Authority, but an inside source told Sky News that the companies did not expect any objections.Assuming approval, the deal is expected to close in early H2 this year. VMO2 Business merges with Daisy Group to build IT and telecoms ‘powerhouse’
