Helios Towers plc yesterday confirmed its intention to proceed with an initial public offering of the ordinary shares of the company.
This follows the announcement by Helios Towers Limited on September 12, 2019 regarding the publication of a registration document.
The company intends to apply for admission of the shares to the premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and to trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange plc (LSE).
Admission will be subject to the requisite regulatory approvals being obtained.
The final offer price in respect of the IPO will be determined following a book-building process, with admission currently expected to occur in October 2019, according to a statement from Bola Adekoya-Olukuewu, the company’s media consultant.
Kash Pandya, CEO of Helios Towers, said: “I am very pleased to confirm our intention to float Helios Towers on the London Stock Exchange.
“The sub-Saharan telecoms market is one of the fastest growing markets in the world. Helios Towers has a proven track record of growth, providing high quality, economically compelling and reliable tower infrastructure and services that drive economic development.
“We believe that we are well-positioned to drive the long-term growth and value of our business and look forward to presenting our investment proposition to investors.”
The confirmation of IPO details showed “admission to the premium segment of the official list of the FCA and to trading on the main market of the LSE. The allotment and issuance of new shares, from which the Company expects to raise gross proceeds of $125 million, as well as the sale of existing shares by existing shareholders including, inter alia, funds managed by Newlight Partners LP, Helios Investment Partners, Albright Capital Management LLC, RIT Capital Partners plc, International Finance Corporation, IFC African, Latin American and Caribbean Fund, L.P., Millicom Holding B.V. and Bharti Airtel.
“Proceeds from the issuance of new shares will provide the group with enhanced flexibility to take advantage of future opportunities in line with the company’s growth strategy, either in current markets or new geographies, including growing and expanding relationships with customers by adding colocation tenants and colocation amendments; growing organically through the construction of additional sites on a build-to-suit basis for telecommunications operators; strategic acquisitions of site portfolios; and expansion into adjacent technologies and services, and be used for general corporate purposes.
“The Company is targeting a free float for Helios Towers plc of at least 25 per cent. and expects that Helios Towers plc would be eligible for inclusion in FTSE UK indices. It is intended that an over-allotment option of up to 15 per cent of the total share offer will be made available.
“UK Plc corporate governance, remuneration and incentivisation arrangements will be described in the prospectus, when published. The Company has engaged Merrill Lynch International, Jefferies International Limited and The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited to act as Joint Global Co-ordinators and Joint Bookrunners and EFG Hermes UAE Limited and Renaissance Securities (Cyprus) Limited to act as Joint Bookrunners in the event the IPO proceeds.”
