MTN strikes $6.2bn deal to acquire IHS Towers
By Azeez Sulaiman
MTN Group has reached an agreement to acquire telecommunications infrastructure giant IHS Holding Ltd in a cash transaction valued at $6.2 billion, marking one of the largest infrastructure deals in Africa’s telecom sector.
The agreement, announced by IHS on Tuesday, offers $8.50 per share to shareholders at a price that represents a 239 per cent premium compared to the company’s share value at the beginning of its strategic review in March 2024.
According to the statement, the transaction provides investors with what it described as an “immediate and certain opportunity” to unlock value created since the launch of the strategic review on March 12, 2024. That review was initiated amid geopolitical tensions and macroeconomic pressures across several of IHS’s key markets.
IHS’s Board of Directors has unanimously endorsed the takeover and will recommend that shareholders approve the transaction. MTN has also committed to voting its existing IHS shares in support of the deal. In addition, long-term investor Wendel has issued a letter backing the transaction.
With both shareholders combined, more than 40 per cent of shareholder support has already been secured.
Upon completion, IHS will be delisted from public markets and will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of MTN.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of IHS Towers, Sam Darwish, described the agreement as a strategic milestone for the company and its investors.
“This announcement provides certainty and immediate value for shareholders, enabling them to crystallise the significant gains generated during the strategic review,” Darwish said.
He added that the deal would strengthen IHS’s longstanding partnership with MTN, bringing together “Africa’s largest mobile network operator with one of its largest digital infrastructure platforms.”
Darwish also acknowledged the company’s growth journey over the past 25 years, noting that IHS expanded from a single tower in one market to operations spanning eleven countries with approximately 40,000 towers at its peak.
The transaction is projected to be finalised in 2026, subject to regulatory clearances and shareholder approval.
Funding for the acquisition will involve the rollover of MTN’s existing 24 per cent fully diluted stake in IHS, approximately $1.1 billion in fresh cash from MTN, about $1.1 billion drawn from IHS’s balance sheet, and the rollover of existing IHS debt.
The agreement also requires IHS to maintain a minimum cash balance of $355 million at closing.
MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita described the acquisition as a decisive step in reinforcing the company’s strategic positioning in Africa’s evolving digital economy.
“This proposed transaction strengthens MTN Group’s strategic and financial profile for a future where digital infrastructure will be central to Africa’s growth and development,” Mupita said.
He added that the deal offers MTN the opportunity to “buy back our towers and enhance our role as partners for progress” in the countries where it operates.
Mupita also assured customers and partners that service standards and governance would remain strong, noting that the combined entity would become the largest integrated tower company on the continent.