The signing ceremony, which marked the completion of the programme’s documentation and regulatory clearances, took place at the Capital Club in Victoria Island, Lagos.

The funds are intended to strengthen Nigeria’s digital infrastructure, expand network capacity, and meet growing demand from enterprises, fintech, cloud services, and AI-driven applications.

Gbenga Olabiyi, managing director of Dimension Data Nigeria, said the bond will support long-term investment in critical infrastructure.

“Sustained infrastructure investment is essential to remaining competitive and unlocking future growth. Properly deployed, it secures operations and allows efficient scaling as data demand rises,” he said.

The gaps in digital infrastructure, including limited metro and last-mile fibre coverage as well as constrained enterprise connectivity are challenges still holding Nigeria back.

Analysts say these shortcomings increase the costs of operations, slow service delivery, and hamper the growth of the country’s digital economy.

Olabiyi noted that the bond programme is designed to address these challenges by expanding network capacity and supporting enterprise and carrier-grade services nationwide.

Shatse Kakwagh, managing partner at Mbavaa Partners Limited, the private equity firm backing Dimension Data, described the bond issuance as a milestone for the company and a validation of its long-term infrastructure strategy.

“This confirms that the opportunities we saw in the market can be realised. The programme provides the right type of capital to fund our growth plans,” he said, adding that investor interest in the first market issuance was strong and oversubscribed.

Transaction advisers included Pathway Advisors Limited as book runner; Greychapel Legal and Alliance Law Firm as solicitors; CardinalStone Registrars Limited and STL Trustees Limited as registrar and trustees; Deloitte & Touche as reporting accountant alongside Mascot Okpori & Co as auditors; Fidelity Bank as receiving bank; and Agusto & Co as rating agency.

He said this in recognition of the importance of the partnership between MTN and NGX; he paid a courtesy visit to the management of the Nigerian bourse, led by its CEO, Mr. Temi Popoola. To mark the occasion, Mr. Mupita, was given the honor of sounding the closing gong to indicate market closure for the day.

It will be recalled that last February, MTN and NGX announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to further promote financial literacy and enhance retail participation in the Nigerian capital market. The announcement was made at a signing ceremony led by Mr. Popoola and the CEO, MTN Nigeria, Mr. Karl Toriola.

The MoU was a two-year partnership that would see NGX and MTNN collaborate to develop capital market solutions, leverage technology to support data dissemination and technology-as-a-service, promote capacity development, and eliminate barriers to retail participation in the capital market.

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Popoola commends MTN for its unwavering efforts in advancing Nigeria’s technology landscape through substantial investments in infrastructure and digital transformation. “We are proud to acknowledge the advancements made through the successful public offering in 2021 and the MoU signed last year.

These initiatives have successfully attracted a notable portion of the younger generation to the capital market, aligning with our goal to increase retail participation. I would also like to especially acknowledge the efforts of the financial advisers on the landmark offering led by Chapel Hill Denham.

“We are optimistic about the prospects of a mutually beneficial partnership with MTN that will reinforce the Nigerian economy and foster sustainable growth for the African continent.”

According to Mr. Mupita, within a year of signing the MOU, a lot has been achieved due to the hard work invested on both sides in forging and sustaining a productive partnership: “At MTN, we believe we have a responsibility to ensure that our customers not only stay connected but can access increasing value and better services through our network, deepening their participation in the digital economy.

Our collaboration with NGX allowed us to empower our customer base with the tools and knowledge to engage effectively with the capital market and meet their financial and investment objectives. For this, NGX deserves to be commended for democratizing access to financial securities, and thereby empowering more Nigerians.”

On his part, MTNN CEO, Mr. Toriola said: “We will continue to identify other areas of cooperation with NGX and we look forward to a continued mutually beneficial partnership that will contribute to the inclusive growth of the Nigerian economy.”

The courtesy visit is also coming on the first anniversary of the completion of its landmark public offer in Nigeria, which was completed on January 31, 2022. Widely applauded as the first public offer to be conducted via a digital platform in Nigeria, the offer expanded MTN Nigeria’s domestic shareholder base to include 126,720 retail investors alongside a range of institutional investors, including Nigerian pension funds representing approximately 6.5 million Nigerian contributors.