Prime Highlights
- BT and Verizon’s 50/50 joint venture creates a $4 billion revenue business across 180 countries, drawing a line under BT’s 18-month hunt for an international buyer
- The deal hands BT chief executive Allison Kirkby a clean path to focus entirely on the UK market, backed by a $625 million equalisation fee from Verizon securing equal ownership
Key Facts
- Verizon pays BT $625 million to lock in equal voting rights across the new venture
- BT has lifted its savings target to 3.7 billion pounds by 2030, with headcount expected to close the decade at between 75,000 and 80,000
Background
BT and Verizon have agreed to merge their international businesses into a 50/50 joint venture, closing out the British telecom group’s search for a buyer that stretched across more than 18 months.
Verizon will pay BT a $625 million equalisation fee to secure equal voting rights in the new venture. The combined business is expected to serve more than 3,000 customers across roughly 180 countries and generate around $4 billion in annual revenue.
The deal marks a turning point for BT, whose chief executive Allison Kirkby has been steering the company toward a sharper focus on its home UK market. Kirkby, who took the top job in February 2024, called the agreement an important step forward as BT delivers on its UK-focused strategy.
Under her leadership, BT has been running a multibillion-pound cost-cutting programme. Last month, the company raised its savings target from 3 billion pounds by 2029 to 3.7 billion pounds by 2030.
Headcount at BT is expected to settle between 75,000 and 80,000 by the end of the decade. BT shares have climbed more than 70% since Kirkby took charge.
Verizon has also been trimming costs. In November, the US mobile company cut around 13,000 jobs as part of a broader push to simplify its operations. Chief executive David Schulman said the joint venture with BT would give customers a secure, technology-ready platform run by a single global organisation.
The new venture brings together two major telecoms players at a time when both companies are working to cut costs and sharpen their international offerings for business customers.