TELECOM giant MTN Group said yesterday it had raised a whopping R4.3 billion from its oversubscribed sale of shares in its Nigerian unit with the goal of broadening its local shareholder base in the country.
MTN’s Series 1 offer for sale of 575 million MTN Nigeria shares was 1.2 times oversubscribed, with a total of 802 million shares subscribed for by more than 126 000 investors. These included Nigerian retail and institutional investors, where participating Nigerian pension funds represented 6.5 million Nigerian contributors, MTN said.
Following the offer, MTN’s shareholding in MTN Nigeria reduced from 78.8 percent to 75.6 percent. MTN’s goal is to hold 65 percent of the business in the medium term.
A further maximum of 4.27 million MTN Nigeria shares, or 0.02 percent, would be allocated to qualifying retail investors who hold the shares allocated to them until January 31, 2023.
MTN group president and chief executive Ralph Mupita said: “We are pleased that this offer has given so many Nigerians the opportunity to become owners of MTN Nigeria. With over 6.6 million Nigerians directly or indirectly becoming shareholders in MTN Nigeria, the objective of broadening the shareholder base and creating shared value has been achieved. We remain committed to playing our humble role in driving digital and financial inclusion in Nigeria over the medium term.”
The telecoms firm said it was the first time that a digital application platform, PrimaryOffer, was used for a Nigerian public offer. More than 74 percent of retail offer subscribers had applied via the PrimaryOffer platform. Many of these investors are new market participants.
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