Vodafone Evaluating U.K. Headquarters Move

LONDON—Vodafone Group PLC, the world's second-largest mobile carrier by subscribers, said Tuesday that it was considering moving its headquarters out of Britain, making it one of the most notable corporations to consider leaving the U.K. after voters last week elected to leave the European Union.

The pan-European company said in a statement late Tuesday that it gained many benefits through the U.K.'s EU membership, including the bloc's free movement of people and the benefits of a single legal framework throughout Europe.

The company said it wasn't yet possible to gauge how these positive attributes of EU membership would be affected after the U.K. leaves the EU, a process that could take two years or more, making it impossible "to draw any firm conclusions regarding the long-term location for the headquarters of the group," Vodafone said. "We will continue to evaluate the situation and will take whatever decisions are appropriate in the interests of our customers, shareholders and employees."

Vodafone said a "very large majority" of its 462 million customers, 108,000 employees and 15,000 suppliers were based outside of the U.K., where it has offices in Newbury, England, and London. It said 55% of its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization came from Europe, excluding the U.K.

Vodafone has hinted for months that it would consider relocating should the U.K. leave the EU. Chief Executive Vittorio Colao, an Italian, had said before the election that leaving the EU would hurt Britain's ability to access Europe's digital industry. And on Friday, the day the election's results were announced, Vodafone said it was "too soon" to determine whether an EU exit would spur it to relocate its headquarters.

Write to Stu Woo at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

June 28, 2016 20:45 ET (00:45 GMT)

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