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MTN is moving to take full control of one of Africa’s largest telecom tower operators in a $6.2 billion deal that would reshape the continent’s digital infrastructure landscape.
The telecom giant has agreed to acquire IHS Holding in an all-cash transaction that values the company at $8.50 per share. That price represents a 239 percent premium to IHS’s share price at the start of its strategic review in March 2024.
IHS said its board has unanimously approved the agreement and will recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the transaction. MTN has committed to vote its existing stake in support of the deal, while long-term shareholder Wendel has also signalled backing. Together, they account for more than 40 percent of shareholder support.
If completed, IHS will be delisted and become a wholly owned subsidiary of MTN.
For IHS investors, the offer provides a clear exit after nearly two years of uncertainty that followed the company’s strategic review, which began during a period of geopolitical and economic strain across several of its markets.
Sam Darwish, chairman and chief executive of IHS, said the deal gives shareholders certainty while deepening a long-standing partnership with MTN. He noted that IHS has grown over 25 years from a single tower in one market to operations spanning 11 countries, with a portfolio that once peaked at about 40,000 towers.
MTN Group chief executive Ralph Mupita described the acquisition as a strategic step toward strengthening the company’s position in a future where digital infrastructure is increasingly critical to economic growth across Africa.
The transaction will be funded through a mix of MTN’s existing roughly 24 percent stake in IHS, about $1.1 billion in new cash from MTN, around $1.1 billion from IHS’s balance sheet and the rollover of existing IHS debt. The deal is also subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals, as well as certain closing conditions.
IHS will be required to maintain a minimum cash balance at closing, and part of the funding plan depends on the successful sale of its Latin American tower and fibre assets, which were announced separately.
The transaction is expected to close in 2026. If the deal is completed, MTN will bring one of Africa’s largest tower networks fully under its roof, giving it tighter control over the infrastructure that keeps millions of people connected every day.
