The UK-based development finance institution CDC Group has announced its anchor commitment of US$30mn to African telecom service provider AXIAN Telecom’s inaugural five-year US$420mn public bond offering
AXIAN Telecom is a fast-growing provider of telecoms services and infrastructure in Madagascar, Togo, Tanzania, Senegal, Comoros, Mayotte, Reunion and Uganda.
The provision of new financing is set to allow AXIAN Telecom to expand its footprint through increasing access to affordable mobile and data services by improving digital access and thus pursuing its strategy of inclusion in the telecom value chain for customers, extending access in rural regions and lower-income demographics.
The expansion of AXIAN Telecom into under-serviced markets should disrupt monopolistic pricing policies and dated product offerings and improve vital digital infrastructure such as fibre optic cables, towers and subsea cables.
Richard Palmer, head of corporate debt at CDC, which will be renamed British International Investment in April, said, “Affordable mobile and data services is a vital component of any economy and investments in under-developed telecom markets is therefore at the core of CDC’s strategy in Africa. Our commitment to this bond financing supports the mobilisation of private capital from institutions that are less familiar with AXIAN Telecom’s markets.”
Hassanein Hiridjee, chairman and founder of AXIAN Telecom, added, “This bond financing will greatly support AXIAN Telecom in reaching millions of people whose prospects can be transformed by access to the services that a mobile phone can provide. This will take us through our next growth phase, and we are grateful for the support that CDC and other DFIs have provided in anchoring this transaction.”
CDC will formally become British International Investment plc (BII) on 4 April 2022.
