JT Group Acquire Isle of Man Broadband and Mobile Provider Manx Telecom

Broadband, technology and telecoms operator JT (Jersey Telecom), which is owned by The States of Jersey and headquartered in St Helier, has expanded its reach from the English Channel Islands to include the Isle of Man after they partnered with CVC DIF (CVC Capital Partners) to acquire the Manx Telecom Group.

Manx Telecom is of course the primary telecoms network for premises across the remote Isle of Man, which is a British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland. Suffice to say that JT’s deal will see them deliver a combined group that serves customers in Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man and across the globe – creating the largest full-service telecoms provider across the Crown Dependencies.

Details of the agreement remain unclear, although JT has vaguely expressed that they hold a “shared commitment to continue investing in resilient and secure, next-generation digital networks, including 5G, fibre, IoT platforms, and managed services to support customers’ use of those networks“.

The partnership with CVC DIF is also expected top “bring additional capital and sector expertise” to support the long-term growth of the partnership, although once again there were no specifics in the announcement.

Daragh McDermott, CEO of JT Group, said:

“Alongside our strategic partner in CVC DIF, this marks a major step forward for JT and Manx Telecom. With the deep sector expertise, we’re building a powerful platform for innovation and investment – one that is rooted in supporting our local economies and communities and built to compete and grow globally.

The JT and Manx Telecom teams share similar values and ambition, making the acquisition a perfect fit, and allowing us to accelerate our plans to secure further scale and growth of IoT and managed service lines of business, whilst continuing to serve our existing markets, with the same dedication and care that has become our hallmark.”

Tom Goossens, Partner and Co-Head of the DIF Infrastructure fund strategy at CVC DIF, said:

“Our investment in Manx Telecom Group reflects our conviction in the long-term value of resilient, locally rooted digital infrastructure. As the Isle of Man’s incumbent operator, Manx Telecom Group offers a strong platform for innovation and growth, and we are excited to support its next phase of development.

The partnership with JT Group further builds on this foundation, enabling us to scale operational capabilities across the Crown Dependencies and beyond. Together, we aim to accelerate investment in next-generation networks and deliver enhanced connectivity and enterprise services to customers.”

Apparently, customers across the Crown Dependencies can now “look forward to broader service options” (again, no details or examples were provided), although it’s worth noting that both operators were already busy investing in FTTP and 5G mobile deployments before the agreement was signed.

The deal also makes no mention of whether or not JT will retain the Manx branding or eventually bring everything under one roof, but for now most of the changes are likely to be more internal.