Telefonica Deutschland Completes Acquisition Of KPN's E-Plus Group - Update

(RTTNews) - Telefonica SA's (TDE.L, TEF) Telefonica Deutschland has completed the acquisition of Dutch Telecom operator Royal KPN NV's (KPN, KKPNY.PK, KKPNF.PK) German mobile telecom business the E-Plus Group.

With the European Commission confirming clearance and the capital increase being successfully completed, the path is clear for the formation of the leading digital telecommunications company in Germany, the firm said.

With the closing of the transaction, the Management Board of the company will consist of Thorsten Dirks as CEO, Markus Haas as COO and Rachel Empey as CFO.

It was on July 23, 2013, that Telefónica Deutschland agreed to acquire E-Plus from KPN. The deal was to see KPN receiving 3.7 billion euros in cash and an initial stake of 24.9 percent in Telefónica Deutschland.

The merger marks the beginning of one of the largest provider of telecommunication services in Germany with almost 47 million customer connections and a pro-forma revenue of around 7.9 billion euros in fiscal year 2013. The company is the number one in the market by mobile customers.

With the implementation of the acquisition, E-Plus will be a 100 percent subsidiary of Telefonica Deutschland, and for the time being there will be no changes for customers.

The design of the corporation as well as the concrete execution of the operative strategy will be decided in the next few months.

In the course of the transaction, the former owner of E-Plus, KPN, will receive a cash disbursement as well as shares of the newly founded Telefonica Deutschland Holding AG.

"The merger of our two companies provides us with the unique opportunity to act as a trend-setter and create real added value for our company and customers," said Thorsten Dirks, CEO of Telefonica Deutschland Holding.

Telefonica SA closed up 1.1 percent in Madrid on Tuesday at 12.26 euros.