MTN Nigeria Begins First Public Shares Sale, Offers 575 Million Units

MTN Nigeria Communications PLC on Thursday announced the opening of a public offering for its shares, a 575 million units bid from institutional investors.

The Telecom giant in a statement wrote:

“This is the first step in MTN Group’s previously communicated statement of intent to sell down approximately 14 percent of its shareholding in MTN Nigeria”.

The shares of MTN Nigeria, listed in Lagos, have returned 19.46 percent in the last year with the network provider in its quarterly update for the period ending 30 September 2021, announcing its intention to proceed with a public offer for sale of up to 575 million shares in MTN Nigeria.

It said: “The offer is anticipated to open in November 2021 with a bookbuild to institutional investors, after which a fixed price is expected to be announced for retail investors, also in November 2021.”

The intention of this is to have the offer close by December 2021.

The company further stressed that the sale is in tandem with its intention to sell down approximately 14 percent of MTN Group’s current shareholding in MTN Nigeria, with the company already reducing its stakes in places like Uganda and Zambia, while also busy separating its fintech and fiber assets.

According to Reuters, MTN Nigeria which in 2019 listed its country’s headquarters in Lagos has gone on to become the second-largest stock by market capitalization, with the quarterly update an indication of another strong performance in the period, “notwithstanding a decline in subscribers due to the ongoing implementation of SIM registration regulations”.

With service revenue shooting up, with data drive revenue growth, supported by fintech and digital services and also by the lower base of voice revenue in the comparative 2020 period as a result of lockdowns, the fortunes of the network got to a significant rise.

Despite issues like the Nigerian Naira depreciation and expenditure occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic that caused a hike in operating expenses, MTN Nigeria appears to be top of its game in Nigeria, with the 4G  roll-out in the world’s most populous black nation going really well.

MTN is arguably the network provider in Nigeria with the widest reach, ahead of other major providers like 9mobile, Globacom, and Airtel, and it is believed the business enterprise will be looking for ways to expand its tentacles to the rural areas that had hitherto been bereft of internet connectivity.