The deal sees Swisscom’s Fastweb brand merge with Vodafone Italia to form Fastweb + Vodafone, with Fastweb CEO Walter Renna taking the reins of the new brand.
The deal closed on December 31, 2024, with Swiss com touting the new offering combining Fastweb's fixed connectivity with Vodafone Italia's mobile services to offer Italian users “innovative, competitively priced converged services”.
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“We herald a new era in Italian telecommunications,” Renna said. “By embracing the opportunity of combined forces, we create a stronger, more innovative organisation to lead Italy into a sustainable digital future, empowering people, businesses and public administrations.”
Swisscom said it has already kicked off the process of combining Fastweb and Vodafone Italia. The combined business will be managed by a newly appointed Executive Committee. The existing commercial brands Fastweb and Vodafone will continue to exist, however.
Swisscom unveiled its intention to acquire Vodafone Italia in March 2024. After receiving greenlights from the Presidency of the Council of Ministers in Italy, the Swiss Competition Commission, and the EU Commission, Swisscom managed to secure a thumbs up for the deal from the Italian Competition Authority following a more in-depth investigation into the deal last September.
The purchase of Vodafone Italy was expected to close in early 2025, which forced Swisscom to revise its EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortisation) guidance for 2024, adding costs of up to €200 million.
The added costs for 2024 are tied to Swisscom’s plans to migrate Fastweb mobile customers to Vodafone Italy’s network, which involves ending existing agreements for mobile network sharing and MVNO services.
The resulting additions saw Swisscom revise its 2024 EBITDA forecast to Swiss Francs 4.3 to 4.4 billion (~US$4.7 million), down from the earlier estimate of 4.5 to 4.6 billion Swiss Francs (~US$4.9 billion)
However, the company confirmed that this change will not affect its free cash flow for the year, with revenue, CAPEX, and dividend guidance for 2024 remaining unchanged.
Christoph Aeschlimann, CEO of Swisscom, said: “I am thrilled about the successful closing, as it strengthens Swisscom Group. The improved positioning in Italy will create long-term value for all stakeholders – thanks to growing cashflows and dividends in the future.
“At the same time, the focus on the Swiss market remains unchanged with continued high investments in innovation, top-quality service, and next-generation infrastructure.”
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