Development Partners International (DPI) and Verod Capital are injecting capital into Pan African Towers (PAT) to support the Nigeria-based digital infrastructure company’s ongoing expansion.
The unspecified strategic investment from African investment firms will fuel PAT’s “continued growth and will work with management to build on the company’s recent achievements and reaffirm its position as Nigeria’s largest homegrown digital infrastructure provider”, PAT said.
Since its inception in 2017, PAT has developed a business model founded on establishing customised, long-term contracts with customers, including Nigeria’s leading mobile network operators and internet service providers.
With the support of DPI and Verod, PAT expects to deepen its relationships with existing partners, expand its customer base and grow its footprint of towers to reach new parts of Nigeria where mobile and wireless penetration remains low.
PAT said it will also benefit from DPI’s experience in scaling tower companies, as the first institutional investor in Eaton Towers, another of Africa’s telecoms businesses it exited in 2019.
Azeez Amida, CEO of Pan African Towers, said the company is committed to sustainable growth, actively reducing its carbon footprint and upholding “best-in-class ESG practices” to foster a greener and more responsible digital future.
“We are excited to partner with DPI and Verod and will leverage their sector experience and market expertise to help us achieve these goals. The evolution of Nigeria’s mobile and wireless industry presents significant opportunities for our business, and we look forward to being a part of this next chapter of growth,” Amida added.
Adefolarin Ogunsanya, partner at DPI, said: “PAT is an exciting homegrown business with significant potential and is uniquely positioned to benefit from the opportunity presented by Nigeria’s digital innovation boom.
“We are incredibly excited to partner with PAT’s management team to help crystallise the company’s vision of becoming Nigeria’s digital infrastructure provider of choice and look forward to sharing our deep knowledge and experience of Africa’s towers industry and the Nigerian market to help achieve this.”
Daniel Adeoye, principal and head of investments at Verod Capital, said: “The Nigerian demographic is currently experiencing a surge in data consumption and related services, driven by a generation of tech-savvy digital natives that are unparalleled. The ‘Verod Consumer Spend Index’ indicates that telecommunication expenses are increasing significantly, providing a tailwind for tower companies like PAT.
“Verod is delighted to support PAT’s management with ample capital and value-creation expertise to navigate this period of growth.”
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