Lycamobile Spain acquired by Spanish MNO Masmovil for €372m

[London] 2^nd March 2020: Lycamobile, the world’s largest mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) and part of the Lyca Group, is delighted to announce the sale of Lycamobile Spain (“the Company”) to the publicly listed Masmovil, a Spanish mobile network operator (MNO). The deal is valued at €372 million and Masmovil has also opted to retain the Lycamobile brand in Spain for the long term.

Lycamobile Spain launched in 2010 with the aim of delivering low-cost mobile services of the highest quality to the market. The Company has since become the country’s leading MVNO, achieving impressive market penetration with over 1.5 million customers. Masmovil’s acquisition of the Company is an affirmation of the accomplishment of Lycamobile in the market.

Commenting on the transaction, Allirajah Subaskaran, founder and Chairman of the Lyca Group said: “When we entered Spain, we dreamed of building the country’s largest MVNO with high-quality, cost effective mobile services. We have now succeeded in that mission, and the acquisition by Masmovil is an affirmation of our success and we are proud that Masmovil has retained the Lycamobile brand for the long term. We wish Masmovil the very best and continued success and growth in Spain.”

“We will now turn our attention to building our global presence with entry into new and exciting markets to add to our existing 23 markets, and furthering Lycamobile’s capabilities in the industry by rolling out similar MNO launches to that which we recently did in Uganda.”

“We would like to thank our loyal customers, our business partners, and the dedication of our Spanish Lycamobile team, who made our story in the country such a success.”

Macfarlanes acted as advisors to Lycamobile Spain.