Vodafone Ukraine acquires remaining 9.4% stake in Freenet for $2 mln

On September 9, 2025, Ukraine’s second-largest mobile operator, VF Ukraine (Vodafone Ukraine, VFU), purchased a 9.4% stake in fixed-line operator LLC Freenet for $2 million (UAH 83 million), bringing its ownership share to 100%.

"Cash consideration of $2 million (UAH 83 million) was paid to the non-controlling shareholders. The carrying value of the non-controlling interests in Freenet LLC was UAH 27 million," Vodafone Ukraine stated in its annual report.

According to the report, the group increased revenue in 2025 by 14% compared to the previous year, reaching UAH 27.8 billion, while net profit rose 18% to UAH 4.18 billion.

Revenue from mobile subscribers grew 16.4% to UAH 22.09 billion, while fixed-line business revenue rose 15.9% to UAH 1.09 billion. Revenue from traffic transit for other mobile operators increased 1.5% to UAH 2.51 billion, roaming revenue rose 3.1% to UAH 780 million, and sales of goods grew 0.6% to UAH 923 million.

Cost of sales climbed to UAH 7.02 billion in 2025 from UAH 6.01 billion in 2024, largely due to higher electricity and other production expenses (UAH 2.86 billion vs. UAH 2.4 billion), radio frequency usage fees (UAH 1.38 billion vs. UAH 1.13 billion), and roaming costs (UAH 410 million vs. UAH 330 million). Meanwhile, expenses for traffic transit in other operators’ networks slightly decreased to UAH 1.15 billion from UAH 1.16 billion.

Advertising and marketing expenses rose to UAH 510 million from UAH 430 million a year earlier, dealer commissions to UAH 500 million from UAH 430 million, consulting costs to UAH 690 million from UAH 570 million, and billing and data processing to UAH 460 million from UAH 360 million.

The group’s headcount remained unchanged at about 4,500 employees.

The company noted it intends to continue servicing its financial obligations on time, though uncertainty persists due to the moratorium on foreign payments. "The ability to repay the principal amount of the debt, which is $281 million and becomes due in February 2027 largely depends on the persistence of foreign currency control restrictions at that time. It also depends on the group’s ability to secure refinancing from financial institutions or negotiate changes to the bond terms with lenders," the report stated.

Management is considering all available options to manage and control cash outflows to ensure refinancing or reach agreements, depending on the status of currency control restrictions.

"Based on management forecasts, it’s expected that the group will be able to meet the financial ratio covenant for the upcoming twelve months from the date of these consolidated financial statements," the report added.

The company reminded that in February it made another semiannual interest payment on eurobonds totaling $13.4 million (UAH 578 million).

In 2025, Vodafone Ukraine declared dividends to shareholders totaling UAH 3.01 billion. As of December 31, 2025, unpaid dividends stood at UAH 412 million, while an additional UAH 151 million was paid out in the first quarter.

The report also noted that to manage currency risk and purchase foreign currency, the group acquired short-term domestic government bonds denominated in dollars and euros with maturities of up to 12 months. Their total volume at year-end 2025 fell to the equivalent of UAH 970 million from UAH 1.33 billion a year earlier. While all securities at the end of 2024 were dollar-denominated, by the end of 2025 the group had invested the equivalent of $280 million in euro-denominated bonds.

As of year-end 2025, Vodafone Ukraine’s free cash stood at UAH 8.09 billion, down from UAH 10.34 billion a year earlier, with 49.1% held in hryvnia and nearly all the remainder in dollars.

Additionally, at the end of 2025 the company held a short-term deposit yielding 0.4% worth the equivalent of UAH 850 million in a subsidiary bank of a major international banking group, classified as a short-term investment. A year earlier, similar deposits yielding 0.3–0.35% annually were placed in three subsidiary banks of major international banking groups, totaling UAH 2.02 billion.