Bharti Airtel’s acquisition of Zain’s African networks, excluding Morocco and Sudan, is officially a done deal, worth $10.7 billion!
The transaction implies an equity value of $9 billion and consideration will be fully satisfied in cash. Of that amount, $8.3 billion will be paid upon closing and $0.7 billion one year from closing. Additionally, the Indian company will assume $1.7 billion of consolidated debt obligations.
Now that the two boards have agreed, we’re waiting for the decision of Zain’s shareholders, which will most likely “yay” the deal. Zain will use the money to repay the $4 billion Revolving Credit Facility, and to distribute a large proportion of the upfront net proceeds to shareholders in the form of dividends. Moreover, the plan is to focus on highly cash generative operations in the Middle East and to substantially improve the balance sheet.
With the close of the acquisition, Bharti’s total customer base increased to around 179 million in 18 countries. In addition to India, Bharti also has operations in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
[Via: CellularNews]