MTN Nigeria Communications Plc has successfully completed the issuance of N110 billion Series 1 7-year 13.01% Fixed rate Bonds due 2028, under its N200 billion Bond Issuance Programme.
The Series I Bond is the largest corporate bond issuance in the debt capital markets thus far in 2021, the firms debut in Nigeria’s debt markets having established strong presence in commercial paper issuances.
The total value of orders received during the Book Build was N132.151 billion, representing a 1.32 times oversubscription of the intended N100 billion issuance.
The issue was launched at a clearing coupon of 13 percent.
The Series I Bond issuance 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 capita; market.
The net proceeds will be partly used to refinance existing debt and support the roll out of critical network 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 ever telco bond issued in Nigeria and the largest corporate bond issuance this year. The domestic debt capital market has given us the opportunity to further diversify our funding sources and extend the maturity of our debt portfolio and profile to match investment in infrastructure. The strong support for this transaction, given the challenging environment is a reflection of the depth of the market, and investor confidence in MTN Nigeria’s long-term strategy, our management team, and overall telecoms industry.”
Chapel Hill Denham Advisory Limited acted as the Lead Issuing House, while Stanbic IBTC Capital, DLM Advisory, FCMB Capital Markets, FBNQuest Merchant Bank, rand Merchant Bank, and vetiva Capital Management acted as Joint Issuing Houses.