Airtel Africa aims to raise USD 750 million through London SE.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel has said that its subsidiary Airtel Africa expects to raise at least USD 750 million (around ₹5,189 crore) through an initial public offering and subsequent listing on the London Stock Exchange.
Additionally, Airtel Africa is also considering listing its shares on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, the company said in a regulatory filing.
Airtel Africa, last year had raised USD 1.25 billion from six investors including Temasek Holdings Pte, SoftBank Group Corp and Warburg Pincus, giving it an equity value of about USD 4.4 billion, which is currently hovering around over USD 5.5 billion as per market watchers.
“The offer is targeted to raise USD 750 million (plus a primary green-shoe option of up to 15 per cent) and will be used to reduce the net debt,” Airtel said in the filing.
It said that Airtel Africa intends to proceed with an initial public offering for admission and listing of its shares on the main market of London Stock Exchange (premium segment).
A regulatory filing by Airtel Africa also said that the company intends to have a free-float of at least 25 per cent of its issued share capital, and certain pre-IPO investors are expected to contribute towards the minimum 25 per cent free float.
“The indicative price range in respect of the offer as well as the number of shares to be sold in the offer, will be determined in due course and contained in the prospectus expected to be published by Airtel Africa in the coming weeks,” it said. Airtel Africa offers telecom services in 14 countries in Africa and is the second-largest mobile operator in Africa by number of active subscribers (as of December 31, 2018).
The company recently reported a profit of USD 412 million for the full year 2018-19 and its revenue increased 5.73 per cent to USD 3,077 million from USD 2,910 million in 2017-18.
Shares of Bharti Airtel closed at ₹353.45 on the BSE on Tuesday, up 0.11 per cent from the previous close.
SOURCE: The Hindu Business Line
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