MTN Nigeria has opened its public offer for retail investors, making 575 million ordinary shares available at a price of NGN169.0 (US$0.41) per share.
CommsUpdate reports that the minimum subscription will be for 20 shares, and that investors will be required to purchase shares in lots of 20, with a free share for each lot up to a maximum allocation of 250 free shares to each individual investor. To obtain this incentive, investors must hold their shares for a year following their allotment.
MTN Group President and CEO Ralph Mupita said: “With this offer, we will contribute to the further deepening of Nigeria’s equity capital markets. It is the first in a series of transactions as the MTN Group implements its plans to ensure broad-based ownership by reducing its shareholding in MTN Nigeria to 65% over time.”
“We thank the Nigerian authorities for the support we as MTN Group have received in the various approvals related to this offer, and remain committed to play our humble role in driving digital and financial inclusion across the country over the medium term.”
Meanwhile, rival operator Airtel Nigeria has received clearance from the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to conduct a proof of concept (PoC) 5G trial on 2nd December in the capital of Abuja. Airtel will use equipment from its “original equipment manufacturer” for the trial, with the NCC supervising.
The test is the second such trial to be conducted in Nigeria after MTN carried out PoC tests in November 2019 in several cities (Abeokuta, Abuja, Calabar, Ibadan, Kanoand Lagos) using trial spectrum in the 3.5GHz and 26GHz bands. Lasting three months, MTN’s tests used equipment from Huwaei in Abuja, ZTE in Calabar and Ericsson in Lagos so that the NCC could evaluate the performance and compliance of each vendor’s equipment.
