Cable & Wireless buys Thus

Cable & Wireless has bought the Thus Group, after the Office of Fair Trading cleared the acquisition in mid-September.

On Wednesday, Thus issued a statement in which it said the offer of 180p per share — representing a total deal worth £329m — had been unconditionally accepted. The company is now known as 'Thus, a Cable & Wireless business'.

Cable & Wireless first approached Thus in May to discuss a possible takeover. The deal brings together the two communication companies' next-generation networks, and adds Thus's mobile-connectivity portfolio to Cable & Wireless's roster.

In a Wednesday statement announcing the acquisition to the London stock market, Cable & Wireless called the deal "an exciting milestone in the history of telecommunications", and said it made Cable & Wireless "an even stronger challenger to BT".