BT Group and Verizon have announced a major strategic partnership, agreeing to combine their international enterprise operations into a new 50:50 joint venture.
The new company will have approximately $4 billion in combined annual revenue and serve a customer base spanning more than 180 countries. It will focus exclusively on providing advanced connectivity and network services to multinational organisations worldwide.
The joint venture will merge BT International, known for its secure and resilient global communication and network services, with Verizon’s international enterprise wireline business. As part of the deal, Verizon will make a $625 million equalisation payment to BT. The transaction is expected to close in 2027, subject to regulatory approvals.
Martijn Blanken has been named CEO-designate of the new entity, pending completion of the deal. A telecoms veteran with nearly three decades of leadership experience, Blanken has held senior roles at Telstra, EXA Infrastructure, and KPN. He will join BT on September 1 to prepare for the venture’s launch.
Allison Kirkby, CEO of BT Group, welcomed the agreement, stating: “Bringing together this expertise and heritage with Verizon’s deep relationships with multinationals will create a stronger, scaled connectivity partner, one that has the reach, innovation and investment to succeed.”
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Dan Schulman, CEO of Verizon, described the joint venture as “a cutting-edge, AI-ready and secure platform run by a single global organisation dedicated to their needs.”
Strategic Significance
The deal resolves long-standing industry speculation about the future of BT International, which had attracted interest from players such as Orange and AT&T. It aligns with BT’s strategy of divesting non-core international assets to sharpen focus on its UK operations.
Kester Mann, Director of Consumer and Connectivity at CCS Insight, highlighted the strategic value of the transaction. “The jewel in the crown of BT International is its network-as-a-service platform, Global Fabric, which provides connectivity to multinational companies,” he noted. “It has also been expanding its SIP-based Global Voice platform.”
For BT, the joint venture structure enables the company to maintain exposure to the $4 billion revenue stream while allowing management to concentrate on domestic priorities. For Verizon, the move addresses the challenge of serving global enterprise customers more efficiently without bearing the full costs of international infrastructure.
