Liberty Global moves closer to €669m Dutch tower sale as Ziggo Group spin-off takes shape

Liberty Global Ltd. has received European Commission clearance for the €669 million sale of VodafoneZiggo’s passive mobile tower assets, removing a major regulatory hurdle as the telecommunications group prepares for the planned Amsterdam listing of Ziggo Group in 2027. The transaction with infrastructure investors led by DigitalBridge Group, Inc., alongside TD Greystone Infrastructure Fund and Legal & General, is expected to close by year-end, with proceeds earmarked for debt reduction rather than general corporate spending. The tower disposal alone represents roughly half of Liberty Global’s targeted €1.2 billion to €1.4 billion program of non-core Ziggo Group asset sales, making it an important component of the balance-sheet restructuring expected before the spin-off. Despite that progress, Liberty Global Class A shares closed about 2.5% lower at $8.34, near a 52-week low, showing that investors remain cautious about leverage, operating trends and the value ultimately unlocked by the restructuring.

The transaction was originally announced in September and values VodafoneZiggo’s tower operation at approximately 16.2 times its 2025 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Liberty Global plans to use the proceeds to retire debt at VodafoneZiggo and strengthen Ziggo Group ahead of the proposed mid-2027 Amsterdam listing. Management has indicated that further disposals remain underway across the new Benelux telecommunications group, which combines Liberty Global’s interests in VodafoneZiggo and Telenet. With European regulatory clearance now secured, the focus shifts toward closing the tower transaction, completing the remaining asset sales and demonstrating that improving operating momentum at VodafoneZiggo can translate into stronger free cash flow before the spin-off.

Why the €669 million VodafoneZiggo tower sale matters for Liberty Global’s 2027 restructuring

The tower disposal is significant because Liberty Global is attempting to simplify the financial profile of Ziggo Group before asking public-market investors to value it as a standalone telecommunications company. The company has targeted between €1.2 billion and €1.4 billion of non-core asset disposals, including tower infrastructure and selected property assets, with proceeds intended primarily for debt reduction. At €669 million, the VodafoneZiggo tower transaction alone accounts for approximately 48% to 56% of that disposal target, meaning its completion would represent substantial progress toward the overall deleveraging plan.

That debt reduction is particularly important because telecommunications businesses typically operate with substantial leverage, supported by relatively predictable subscription revenue and infrastructure assets. High leverage can nevertheless reduce equity valuations when interest expenses absorb cash that could otherwise fund dividends, network investment or shareholder returns. Liberty Global is effectively trying to improve the equity story before Ziggo Group reaches the public market by selling infrastructure that investors are willing to value at relatively high multiples and using the cash to reduce financial obligations.

The 16.2-times 2025 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization valuation attached to the tower assets helps explain why the sale is strategically attractive. Passive telecom towers can command high infrastructure multiples because they produce recurring rental income from mobile network operators and require comparatively predictable capital spending. Liberty Global can therefore monetize those assets at a premium valuation while retaining access to the physical infrastructure through long-term commercial arrangements.

For the buyers, the transaction creates a different opportunity. DigitalBridge Group, Inc., Legal & General and TD Greystone Infrastructure Fund plan to combine VodafoneZiggo Towers with Belgium Tower Partners, forming an independent Western European tower platform with more than 6,600 sites across Belgium and the Netherlands. VodafoneZiggo and Telenet will remain anchor customers, providing the new tower operator with established telecommunications tenants while creating opportunities to add other network operators over time.

Ziggo Group is being built as a standalone Benelux telecom company before its Amsterdam listing

Liberty Global’s broader strategy became clearer after it completed the acquisition of Vodafone Group Plc’s remaining 50% interest in VodafoneZiggo. Vodafone received approximately €1 billion in cash plus a 10% interest in the newly created Ziggo Group, while Liberty Global retained the remaining 90%. Ziggo Group now holds Liberty Global’s interests in VodafoneZiggo in the Netherlands and Telenet across Belgium and Luxembourg, creating a regional telecommunications platform serving approximately 13 million customers and generating roughly €6.6 billion in revenue based on figures provided when the structure was established.

Liberty Global intends to spin its 90% Ziggo Group stake directly to shareholders and list the business on Euronext Amsterdam in 2027, subject to required approvals and completion of the restructuring process. That means Liberty Global investors would effectively receive direct ownership exposure to the Benelux telecommunications business rather than relying on its value to remain embedded within the broader holding company.

The strategic reasoning is partly about eliminating the persistent holding-company discount that can affect diversified telecommunications groups. Liberty Global owns interests in multiple operating companies, infrastructure assets and investment holdings across several countries, making the consolidated equity story more difficult for investors to value. Separating Ziggo Group could allow the market to assess its revenue, leverage, free cash flow and dividend prospects independently.

Management has also identified approximately €1 billion of estimated net present value from potential financial and operational synergies associated with creating the regional group. Those opportunities include financing efficiencies and services that can be shared across VodafoneZiggo and Telenet, although investors should distinguish projected synergies from realized earnings. The actual valuation created through the spin-off will depend on whether Ziggo Group can demonstrate improving operating performance and sustainably reduce leverage before listing.

VodafoneZiggo’s operating turnaround could become just as important as the asset sales

Selling towers and paying down debt improves the balance sheet, but Liberty Global also needs the underlying VodafoneZiggo business to demonstrate healthier commercial momentum if Ziggo Group is to command an attractive public-market valuation. The latest update provided encouraging signs, with management reporting that VodafoneZiggo achieved its best broadband net-add performance since 2019 during the third quarter and generated overall revenue growth.

That follows a second quarter in which VodafoneZiggo returned to positive broadband net additions for the first time in more than six years. Second-quarter revenue reached approximately $1.13 billion, increasing 0.9% on a reported basis, although rebased revenue remained 1.5% lower. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization were approximately $470 million, down 5.4% as reported and 7.6% on a rebased basis, partly reflecting spending on network reliability, marketing and programming.

The contrast between subscriber improvement and lower adjusted earnings illustrates why investors remain cautious. VodafoneZiggo appears to be gaining commercial momentum, but the business still needs to prove that better customer trends can translate into sustainable earnings and free cash flow after accounting for network investments and competitive pricing.

Network upgrades could support that effort. VodafoneZiggo recently completed an 18-month upgrade using DOCSIS 4 technology and has launched internet speeds of up to 8 gigabits per second in the Netherlands. Liberty Global argues that the upgrade future-proofs much of the existing network without requiring the significantly more expensive excavation work associated with replacing large portions of cable infrastructure with full fiber.

That strategy could become economically important as telecommunications operators compete with fiber providers. If VodafoneZiggo can deliver multi-gigabit speeds using upgraded cable infrastructure, it may be able to defend broadband market share while avoiding some of the heavy construction spending required by competitors building entirely new networks. The key test will be whether those technical improvements increase customer retention and average revenue per user without forcing excessive promotional spending.

Liberty Global stock weakness shows investors still want proof that the spin-off will unlock value

Liberty Global Class A shares closed at approximately $8.34 on October 14, down about 2.5% despite the regulatory clearance announcement. The stock reached a fresh 52-week low during the session and remains roughly 38% below its $13.52 52-week high reached in February. Based on the company’s roughly $11.14 year-end 2025 closing level, LBTYA has also fallen about 25% during 2026.

That performance suggests investors are not yet assigning significant value to the restructuring simply because individual milestones are being completed. The tower sale was already announced in September, meaning regulatory clearance removes execution risk but does not fundamentally change the economics of a transaction the market already knew about. More importantly, investors remain focused on leverage, operating performance and whether the Ziggo Group listing ultimately creates a valuation uplift for existing Liberty Global shareholders.

The stock’s continued weakness also highlights the broader problem Liberty Global is trying to address. The company has monetized multiple assets during 2026, including a $604 million exit from its remaining interest in EdgeConneX, while pursuing additional disposals and corporate separations. Yet the public-market valuation has continued to weaken, suggesting investors are applying a substantial discount to the portfolio until the restructuring translates into clearer per-share value.

The tower sale therefore matters less as a standalone €669 million transaction and more as evidence that Liberty Global is executing the sequence required to bring Ziggo Group to market. Completion would convert another infrastructure asset into cash, lower VodafoneZiggo debt and reduce one obstacle ahead of the Amsterdam listing.

The next major checkpoint comes with Liberty Global’s third-quarter results on November 3. Management has already indicated that VodafoneZiggo delivered overall revenue growth and stronger broadband customer trends during the quarter, but investors will want detailed evidence on earnings, free cash flow, leverage and the pace of additional disposals.

From an investment perspective, European Commission clearance is clearly constructive because it reduces the probability that regulatory issues derail the tower monetization. It does not, however, resolve the larger valuation question. Liberty Global still needs to demonstrate that asset sales, operating improvements and debt reduction can create a Ziggo Group capable of attracting investors independently in 2027. If that strategy works, today’s depressed LBTYA valuation could eventually look disconnected from the value of the assets being separated. If operating earnings remain pressured or deleveraging progresses too slowly, the restructuring alone may not be enough to close the discount.

Key takeaways on what investors should watch after Liberty Global’s €669 million tower deal clears the EU

• The European Commission has cleared Liberty Global’s €669 million sale of VodafoneZiggo’s passive mobile tower assets.
• The transaction is expected to close by year-end, with proceeds earmarked for debt reduction at VodafoneZiggo.
• The tower sale represents roughly half of Liberty Global’s targeted €1.2 billion to €1.4 billion Ziggo Group asset-disposal program.
• VodafoneZiggo’s towers were valued at approximately 16.2 times 2025 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
• Liberty Global plans to list Ziggo Group in Amsterdam in 2027 and distribute its 90% ownership stake to shareholders.
• VodafoneZiggo reported its strongest broadband customer performance since 2019 during the third quarter alongside overall revenue growth.
• The recent DOCSIS 4 network upgrade enables broadband speeds of up to 8 gigabits per second without a full fiber rebuild.
• LBTYA shares fell about 2.5% to $8.34 and remain near a 52-week low despite progress on the restructuring.
• Investors should watch debt reduction, additional asset sales and VodafoneZiggo’s detailed third-quarter performance when Liberty Global reports on November 3.