Digicel raises US$150 million to fund growth in TT, Haiti

The company said the investment is led by banks Citigroup and JP Morgan Chase, the bond financing priced at a yield of 8.625 percent following the inaugural US$300 million bond offering initiated last July.

Since launching in Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti, Digicel has quickly gained market share in both countries and mobile customers have embraced the company’s mobile technology and telecommunications services. In Haiti, a country with a population of 8.5 million and combined fixed and cellular penetration of 5.7 percent, Digicel has brought an unprecedented inward investment of US $130 million to the developing nation. “In conjunction with the successful high yield initiative and as a result of the continued confidence of the international financing community in the company’s dynamic business strategy, Digicel has further enhanced the terms of its US $600 million debt facility,” Digicel said.

Colm Delves, Digicel Group CEO said, “We will continue to aggressively expand our services in Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti, as we have seen tremendous acceptance by our mobile customers in these markets which, in turn, has led us to significantly increase our investment in both of these countries. We are delighted that, yet again, the international investment community has demonstrated its strong confidence in our growth strategy and current expansion efforts.”

Earlier this month, the company launched its services in Turks and Caicos and Bonaire, increasing mobile competition in both of these markets. Digicel’s total investment in the Caribbean stands at US $1.2 billion and the company directly employs 2,000 having doubled its employee base in the space of just one year.