Luxembourg-based fund Altice has made its latest acquisition buying 88% of Dominican Republic quad-play operator Tricom.
Altice acquired the stake from Hispaniola Telecom Holdings, a vehicle owned by US PE firm Amzak Capital Management and Panama-based…
Luxembourg-based fund Altice has made its latest acquisition buying 88% of Dominican Republic quad-play operator Tricom.
Altice acquired the stake from Hispaniola Telecom Holdings, a vehicle owned by US PE firm Amzak Capital Management and Panama-based investor Inversiones Bahia, which will retain a 12% stake.
The parties did not disclose the value of the deal, which will need approval from the Dominican regulatory authority, Indotel.
Altice said it plans to “move aggressively” to expand Tricom’s mobile offering. The Dominican Republic’s wireless market looks set to be shaken up imminently as number-two operator Orange Dominicana has been put up for sale by its French parent.
Two of the regions major players – Cable & Wireless Communications and Digicel – are both reported to be exploring bids for the unit, which was valued by an analyst at between €675m (US$886m) and €900m (US$1.18bn) in the summer.
Dexter Goei, CEO of Altice, said: “The acquisition of Tricom is an important step in the implementation of our stated growth strategy of identifying attractive opportunities in markets where we can create value.”
Altice strengthened its position in the Caribbean earlier this year by acquiring Outremer Telecom, to add to Le Cable. That deal meant that Altice could offer quad-play services in French Guiana, Reunion and Mayotte, and improve its position in Martinique and Guadeloupe.
In October it further solidified its position in Reunion with the acquisition of Mobius Group, which provides internet access to professional clients under the ‘Mobius Technology’ brand, and double and triple-play offers to private clients under the ‘Izi’ brand.
Alongside Outremer and Mobius, Altice has closed another deal this year: the purchase of 100% of Portuguese telco Oni. It subsequently merged enterprise-focused Oni with its consumer-facing cableco Cabovisao.
Meanwhile Altice is also looking to increase its stake in French cableco Numericable to 30% through a planned listing.
Altice’s cable, mobile, DSL and data centre assets also span Israel, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland.
