Vodafone: Too Early to Say if It Will Relocate Headquarters After 'Brexit' Vote
June 24 2016 - 9:24AM
Dow Jones News
By Simon Zekaria
LONDON--Vodafone Group PLC (VOD.LN) said Friday it is "too soon"
for the telecommunications giant to know whether Britain leaving
the European Union will mean it will have to relocate its
headquarters, as one of the country's biggest corporates analyzes
the impact of the historic vote on the future of its
operations.
Vodafone, the world's second-biggest mobile operator by
subscribers after China Mobile Ltd. (0941.HK) is based in Newbury,
England and employs more than 13,000 people across the U.K. Most of
its sales come from key operations in Europe across Spain, Italy
and Germany, while in recent years it has also accelerated growth
in fast-growing emerging telecoms markets like India and
Turkey.
Vodafone moving its headquarters out of Britain would be a
enormous blow to the U.K. economy, which is roiled by deep
uncertainty following Thursday referendum result which saw more
than half the country back Britain leaving the bloc, otherwise
known as 'Brexit'.
Vodafone Chief Executive Vittorio Colao, alongside many other
business leaders occupying the blue-chip FTSE 100 index, came out
fervently in favor of the U.K. remaining in the EU, saying it was
good for jobs and investment.
In a statement Friday, Vodafone said: "It is too soon to form a
view on the implications of the referendum outcome for the domicile
of the group."
It tried to soften the blow by stressing that the firm is
well-placed to resist change.
"The political and economic consequences of the U.K.'s
withdrawal from the EU are for others to consider now that the U.K.
electorate has reached its decision. In terms of the implications
for Vodafone, each of our country businesses operates as a
standalone entity able to adapt to a wide range of local
conditions. As we said before the referendum, we remain committed
to supporting our U.K. customers regardless as to the outcome, now
and in the future."
At 1240 GMT, Vodafone shares slipped 2.8% to 212 pence, valuing
the company GBP57.9 billion ($79.4 billion).
--Write to Simon Zekaria at simon.zekaria@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 24, 2016 09:09 ET (13:09 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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