africa_africa 30/10/2014 16:15 Page 1
Africa
Ad va n c e d Te l e v i s i o n
Market Briefing 2014
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Wananchi raises $130m expansion funds
frican triple-play operator
Wananchi Group, owners of the
Zuku Fiber, Zuku pay TV and
Simbanet business services brands, has
raised $130 million to fund its growth
and expansion in East and Southern Africa.
“The new capital investment will be used to
consolidate the group’s market leadership in
East Africa and to extend our services across
East and Southern Africa. We will continue the
deployment of fibre to the home networks in
A
more cities in East Africa and extend our
business services networks and product
offerings across a wide variety of geographies
and market segments. With our stronger
balance sheet we will also invest in exciting
new technologies and service platforms to
improve the quality of our products and deliver
a superior experience for our customers,” said
Richard Bell, vice chairman of Wananchi.
The capital investment was co-led by
existing Wananchi shareholders including
Altice SA, Liberty Global, Emerging Capital
Partners (ECP) and ATMT and new investors,
Helios Investment Partners.
Ali Mufuruki, chairman of the Board of
Wananchi, said it was a “very exciting time”
for Wananchi. “We have grown
tremendously over the six years since we
founded the business. The significant size of
this investment round is further proof that
the markets have confidence in our business
strategy and our performance to date. There
is no better time than now to invest in
African markets and the transformation of
the African consumer experience, of which
Wananchi is at the forefront in East Africa,”
he declared.
“We believe this capital injection will enable
the Wananchi Group to extend the coverage of
its infrastructure as well as build upon its
strong broadband-led triple play product
offering, including direct to home satellite
products to many more tens of thousands of
consumers across the greater Eastern Africa
region and beyond,” added Dennis Aluanga, a
partner at Helios based in Kenya.