The $850m public bond offering has secured backing from BII, IFC and Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund as anchor investors, helping mobilise over $700m of private capital.
British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution (DFI), is committing $30m (€27.6m) as co-anchor investor in the public bond offering by Helios Towers, a telecom infrastructure company operating across Africa and the Middle East.
BII’s investment was made alongside other anchor investors including International Finance Corporation (IFC), Germany’s DEG, and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund. These commitments have helped mobilised over $700m of private capital.
The public $850m public bond offering, listed on the London Stock Exchange, will help the firm refinance its existing debts while targeting areas with low levels of mobile and 4G access.
This is the second LSE-listed public bond issuance BII has anchored, following the launch of Africa’s first sustainability bond supporting African climate finance in May, as reported by Impact Investor.
“As the UK’s DFI, we are pleased to back Helios Tower’s public bond issuance as an anchor investor and be able to mobilise international commercial capital. This will help channel money to the regions that need it the most and improve information and communications services, leading to more inclusive economic growth,” said Chris Chijiutomi, managing director and head of Africa at BII.
Helios Towers operates across nine countries including Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, the Republic of the Congo, South Africa, Senegal, Madagascar, and Malawi.
“We are delighted to announce the successful pricing of our bond offering. This reflects the company’s track record and market diversification since our last Bond offering and expected cash flow generation through to 2026,” said Manjit Dhillon, chief financial officer at Helios Towers.
