Vodafone is set to assume full ownership of the UK’s largest mobile network in a £4.3 billion buyout deal involving Hong Kong conglomerate CK Hutchison.

The business owned by billionaire Li Ka-shing has agreed to sell its 49 per cent stake in VodafoneThree, a network serving more than 27 million customers, to its joint-venture partner Vodafone.

Under the agreement, Vodafone will acquire CK Hutchison’s shareholding for cash and cancel the associated shares, giving it full control of the operation.

The transaction forms part of CK Hutchison’s broader strategy to streamline its global portfolio and return value to shareholders.

The group is also exploring the sale of most of its ports business and considering a possible stock market listing of its retail division.

CK Hutchison previously held a controlling stake in Three UK before it agreed in 2023 to merge the business with Vodafone’s British telecoms operations.

The £16.5 billion deal combined the UK’s third- and fourth-largest mobile operators to form a new market leader, overtaking rivals including BT’s EE and Virgin Media O2, which is jointly owned by Telefónica and Liberty Global.

In June, Vodafone pledged to invest over £1 billion to expand network coverage over the following year as it finalised the merger with its former rival Three UK.

The deal marked the biggest restructuring of the UK telecoms market in years, reducing the number of major mobile network operators from four to three.

Although the UK competition regulator initially raised concerns that prices could rise for consumers, it ultimately approved the merger in December 2024, subject to legally binding conditions.