Airtel Africa cuts debt, lowers prices via share buyback from Citigroup

Airtel Africa has purchased again 8.6 million extraordinary shares from Citigroup International Markets Restricted as a part of a share buyback plan that started in February 2024. 

The second largest cellular community operator in Nigeria stated the programme’s major goal was to scale back share capital which in flip cuts down Airtel’s debt obligations and value of operations which has grown in current occasions. 

Segun Ogunsanya, CEO of Airtel Africa, claims Airtel’s companies have generated important money therefore the choice of the board to launch a share buy-back programme. 

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“The board believes that repurchasing its shares is a horny use of its capital in gentle of the Group’s sturdy long-term progress outlook,” stated Segun Ogunsanya, CEO of Airtel Africa. 

The buy-back programme kicked off on March 1, 2024, and includes the repurchase of $100 million value of the corporate’s shares in 12 months. 

The programme is split into two tranches with the primary tranche value $50 million working for a interval of seven months – from March to August 2024.

The latest transaction between Airtel and Citigroup includes the repurchase of 487,985 extraordinary shares at a weighted common worth of £103.94 ($131.70) per share. 

Airtel Africa has struggled to stay profitable because of macroeconomic challenges in Nigeria, its largest market on the continent. The corporate’s monetary assertion confirmed income dropped by 21.96% to $1.24 billion in December 2023, from $1.59 billion because of the fall of the naira affecting Airtel’s conversion charges. Airtel not too long ago took steps to scale back its excessive working prices like outsourcing most of its tower operations to IHS Towers. The buy-back programme additionally helps the corporate scale back its debt obligations because it seeks different methods to keep up profitability.