MTN Nigeria Completes N10bn Bonds Issuance
MTN Nigeria has announced the completion of its bond issuance of N110 billion fixed rate Series 1 bond due in 2028 under a N200 billion bond programme.
The telecom giant said the transaction would assist in refinancing existing debt and support the toll out of capital market infrastructure.
Recall that in April 2021, the yellow brand announced the launch of a N100 billion series 1, 7 years 13.0 percent fixed rate bonds due in 2028 (series 1) under a 200 billion naira bond programme.
Following the successful completion, MTN in a statement on Thursday by Uto Ukpanah, company Secretary, said the bond issuance was the first of its kind in the telecom industry and biggest bond transaction this year.
The statement read, “MTN Nigeria (MTN) has successfully completed the issuance of a 100 billion series 1, 7 years 13.0 percent fixed rate bonds due in 2028 (series 1) under a 200 billion naira bond programme. The company had initially indicated the intention to raise N100 billion in series 1 of the registered shelf programme.
“The series 1 bonds is the largest corporate bond in the debt control markets thus far in 2021 and MTN Nigeria debut in the domestic bond market, the company having established a strong presence in commercial paper issuance.
“The bond build process in respect of the transaction launched on April 9th 2021 and was completed on April 16th 2021. The travsaction was well received with active participation from a, wide range of high value and quality investors including pension funds, funds managers, banks, Insurance companies, Trustees, corporates and high net worth individuals.
“The total value of orders received during the book build was N135,151,000,000, representing a 1.32 times oversubscription of the intended N100,000,000,000 issuance,. The issue was launched at a clearing coupon of 13.0 percent with N1110 billion in qualified bid.”
Accirding to MTN, “the series 1 bond issuance further reinforces MTN Nigeria’s strategy of diversifying its funding sources and reflects its market leadership and strong credit quality, as well as the resilience of the domestic debt capital market. The net proceeds will partly be used to refinance existing debt and support the toll out of capital market infrastructure. ”
Commenting, on the bond issuance, Karl Toriola, Chief Executive Officer of MTN Nigeria, said, “We are very proud of this landmark transaction, which is the first telco bond issuance in Nigeria and the largest corporate bond issuance this year.
The domestic debt capital market has given us the opportunity to to further diversify our funding sources and extend the maturity of our debt portfolio and profile to match investment in infrastructure.
He added that “the strong support for this transaction, giving the challenging environment, is a reflection of the depth of the market, and investors confidence in MTN Nigeria’s long term strategy., our management team and the overall telecom industry.”
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