Spirent shares jump 60% as it accepts £1bn bid from US rival Viavi

Spirent Communications reported an 80% plunge in 2023 pre-tax profits to £18.1m. Photograph: Kristoffer Tripplaar/Alamy

Shares in the UK telecoms firm Spirent Communications jumped 60% after it accepted a £1bn offer from a US rival in the latest takeover of a British company by a foreign firm.

The Arizona-based Viavi Solutions, which manufactures, tests and monitors equipment for networks, will pay 172.5p in cash and a special dividend of 2.5p, in lieu of a final dividend, for each Spirent share.