By 
In March 2024, global investment firm Actis revealed plans to sell Octotel, its South African fibre network operator, to a consortium, contingent on regulatory approval. The South African Competition Commission has now given the green light to the deal, concluding that it will not “substantially lessen or prevent” competition within the telecommunications infrastructure sector.
To address employment concerns, the Competition Commission has stipulated that the newly formed entity resulting from the merger must not lay off employees for two years following the merger’s completion.
Furthermore, the consortium will also acquire a minority stake in RSAWeb, an Internet service provider, pending standard regulatory approvals and closing conditions.
This approval follows Actis’s recent announcement of its acquisition of Swiftnet — Telkom’s masts and towers business — for R6.75 billion ($374.3 million), which has also received the nod from the Competition Commission.
Actis initially acquired a majority stake in Octotel in December 2020 for R2.3 billion ($128.5 million), capitalizing on the growing demand for high-speed connectivity and increasing data consumption in South Africa. The investment strategy focused on expanding fibre network coverage and enhancing adoption rates.
Under this strategy, Octotel has seen substantial growth, with the number of homes passed by fibre increasing from 195,000 to 350,000, and connected customers rising from 56,000 to 110,000.
According to the Competition Commission, the primary acquiring firm in this transaction is controlled by STOA and IDEAS Infrastructure II GP (Pty) Ltd (IDEAS), a local private infrastructure fund managed by AIIM, a private equity firm ultimately overseen by Old Mutual.
Comments