US-based Emerging Capital Partners (ECP) has sold its stake in incumbent MTN Cote d’Ivoire, six years after its initial investment.
The deal value for the 25.3% stake, held through Planor Capital International (PCI), has not been disclosed but the…
US-based Emerging Capital Partners (ECP) has sold its stake in incumbent MTN Cote d’Ivoire, six years after its initial investment.
The deal value for the 25.3% stake, held through Planor Capital International (PCI), has not been disclosed but the private equity firm said the investment delivered “a cash multiple of 2.6x on exit, returning over US$80m in capital”.
The buyer’s name has not been revealed either and the firm did not reply to requests for comment.
The other shareholders in MTN Cote d’Ivoire are South African parent MTN, with a 64.7% stake, and West African holding company Teylium Group, which has a 10% interest.
ECP originally made the investment in the Ivorian mobile unit in 2007. “The success shown by [MTN Cote d’Ivoire] over the holding period…demonstrates the growth and resiliency of the sector,” Brice Lodugnon, a director at ECP, said.
“This is particularly true given the global financial crisis and the Ivorian political conflict, which both occurred during the investment holding period,” he added.
Throughout its history, ECP says it has made six investments and exits in Africa’s mobile market, which include Celtel International, Telecel Faso, Orascom Telecom Algeria and Sonatel.
The PE firm is still invested in wireless players Cellcom, which operates in Guinea and Liberia, and Airtel Gabon. It also has stakes in Africa-focused towerco IHS as well as in Kenya-based media and telecoms group Wananchi.
