BT scraps dividend, invests in fibre as rivals agree merger

Britain's biggest telecoms group BT suspended its dividend and said it would spend billions more on faster fibre broadband connections, as it prepares to meet the challenge posed by the merger of two of its biggest rivals.

It will also help fund a 12 billion pound plan to upgrade its legacy copper network to full fibre. If the conditions are right, BT said it could reach 20 million premises by the mid to late 2020s, 5 million more than it had targeted. "This was a tough decision, but although hard on shareholders, a necessary one so that we can allocate capital for value-enhancing investments," he told reporters.He said the impact of the pandemic would only become clearer as the economic consequences unfolded over the next 12 months.

"Personally, I think the industry needs consolidation so it's a sensible move," he said."It follows our strategy."

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