Disqus
Virgin Mobile has recently entered the ever-growing mobile market of Chile, and has consequently managed to attract some 65,000 customers in just 4 months. That’s nice pace but in order to keep it up, the company needs more money, and it’s turning to IFC to get “that part” done.
Under the deal, Virgin Mobile will be provided with the $11 million debt facility to “speed its entry into the Chilean mobile market.” Moreover, the same cash will be used to “enhance the mobile market in a number of Latin American countries including Brazil and Colombia”.
Like in many other countries, Virgin Mobile’s offering appeals to the youth with its “strong no-contract voice and data packs, superior customer service, and through its fun and irreverent brand image”.
Earlier this year, Virgin Mobile Latin America secured $26.5 million of equity funding from investors like Virgin Group and Hermes Growth Partners, a fund co-founded by former Telefonica head Juan Villalonga.
According to Wireless Intelligence, the Chilean market is dominated by Entel (9.8 million connections), Telefonica’s Movistar (9.6 million) and America Movil’s Claro (5.7 million).
[Via: MobileBusinessBriefing]
About The Author
Dusan Belic
Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The "convergence" is what he's most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do. In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it's an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he's there to try it out. He admits though, he's still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which "sings" perfectly with the mobile PIM application. Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in Serbia, South-East Europe, from where he edits the site on a daily basis.
