A Middle Eastern telecoms conglomerate has acquired a nearly 10 percent stake in Vodafone, under pressure to restructure its business.

Emirates Telecommunications Group, which just renamed from Etisalat to e&, is now Vodafone's largest shareholder after confirming a £3.3bn attack on the British company on Saturday.

E& stated that it had invested "to gain significant exposure to a global leader in connectivity and digital services" and had no intention of launching a takeover bid, preventing it from doing so for at least six months.

The Abu Dhabi-based group, which has established a particular holding company, Atlas 2022, to control the Vodafone investment, has stated that it intends to be a "long-term and supportive shareholder in Vodafone and is not seeking to exert control or influence over the company's board or management."

Vodafone asserts on its website that it supplies government agencies, including the Ministry of Justice, so any new owner would need to be thoroughly screened.

A government official stated, "The government has robust processes to ensure the security and protection of its IT systems." The National Security and Investment Act gives the government the authority to interfere if national security concerns arise in connection with an acquisition.

Nick Read, the chief executive officer of Vodafone, is under pressure to sell off subsidiaries and increase returns following a more than 20 percent drop in the company's share price since he took over in 2018.

Vodafone disclosed that it was in negotiations with rivals in the United Kingdom, Spain, Germany, and Italy, ostensibly in response to pressure from Cevian, Europe's most prominent activist investor, which purchased a stake in Vodafone and demanded a corporate restructuring.

Cevian, based in Sweden and is known for taking longer-term positions to turn around businesses without taking aggressive action, is seeking a consolidation of Vodafone's sprawling empire to concentrate on its most profitable markets and inject more telecoms experience at the board level.

Hatem Dowidar, the current CEO of E& and a former executive at Vodafone, stated that he was "looking forward to building a mutually beneficial strategic partnership with Vodafone in order to drive value creation for both our businesses, explore opportunities in the rapidly developing global telecoms market, and support the adoption of next-generation technologies."

As part of its strategy to expand into a worldwide technology investment conglomerate, E& recently purchased a majority position in Maroc Telecom and the Emirati online grocery store ElGrocer.

Vodafone, which is scheduled to report its full-year results to the City on Tuesday, stated that it was looking forward to "building a long-term relationship with Etisalat" and "making good progress on our long-term strategic plans."

Friday's closing price for Vodafone shares was 117.82p, a decline of 0.9p, valuing the business at £33bn.