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Liquid Intelligent Technologies Financing PLC (the “Issuer”), part of the leading pan-African telecoms group Liquid Intelligent Technologies (the “Group”), has successfully closed a US$180 million tap offering (the “Additional Notes”) of the Issuer’s US$550 million 8½% Senior Secured Notes due 2022 (the “Original Notes”), at an issue price of 105.0% (the “Offering”).
The proceeds of the Additional Notes will be used to refinance our debt, invest in the expansion of our data centres and network infrastructure and to pay costs, expenses and fees in connection with the Offering.
The successful offering reflects the increased demand that the Group has seen in its wholesale, enterprise and retail segments in the first-half of 2017.
Commenting on the Offering, Nic Rudnick, Liquid Intelligent Technologies’s Group CEO said:
“This is an exciting time for Liquid Intelligent Technologies as we deliver our strategy with further investment and the monetisation of our network.
Through the year we have seen increased demand from our customers reflected by our revenue and EBITDA growth. With this backdrop in mind, the Board has approved the repayment of the term-loan portion of our debt, replacing it with further bonds and therefore simplifying our capital structure and raising additional funding.
The funding will enable Liquid Intelligent Technologies to continue to deliver its strategy to further expand and enhance its pan-African fibre network – the largest of its kind in the region – and broaden its digital service offering such as enterprise cloud services including Office 365 and Azure and new content products including Netflix and 100 other channels across the African continent.”
The Additional Notes, which have been issued pursuant to Regulation S / Rule 144A, will bear interest at a rate of 8.5% per annum and will be guaranteed by Liquid Intelligent Technologies Holdings Limited and certain of its subsidiaries. The Additional Notes will have the same terms as the Original Notes in all respects and will be consolidated with and form a single series with the Original Notes. The Additional Notes have been rated in line with Liquid Intelligent Technologies’s corporate ratings of Ba3 (stable) by Moody’s, and B+ (stable) by Fitch.
Relevant stabilization regulations including FCA / ICMA will apply.
