The UK Competition and Markets Authority said on July 1 that it had referred nexfibre’s planned acquisition of Substantial Topco Limited for an in-depth Phase 2 investigation under the Enterprise Act 2002 after accepting a fast-track request from the parties.
The CMA said the transaction covers Substantial and subsidiaries including Netomnia, Brsk, Brsk ISP and YouFibre, and identified the acquirer as Opal JVco Limited, with nexfibre Bidco Limited as the buying entity under a sale and purchase agreement dated Feb. 18, 2026.
The regulator stated that Liberty Global and Telefonica jointly own Virgin Media O2 and, together with InfraVia, jointly own nexfibre. A merger inquiry was formally launched on June 29 after an earlier invitation to comment issued on April 23 closed on May 8.
The CMA said the Phase 2 inquiry group must report by Dec. 15, 2026 and will examine whether the arrangements create a relevant merger situation and, if so, whether that may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition in any UK market for goods or services. The commencement notice said the initial Phase 1 period began on June 30 and would otherwise have had a statutory deadline of Aug. 26 absent the fast-track referral.