IHS Holding to be Acquired by MTN Group for $8.50 per Share
IHS Holding (IHS) has entered into a merger agreement to be acquired by MTN Group (MTNOY) for $8.50 per ordinary share, in an all-cash transaction that values IHS Towers at an enterprise value of approximately $6.2B. Under the terms of the Agreement, IHS Towers shareholders will receive $8.50 per ordinary share in cash, representing a premium of approximately 239% premium over IHS Towers' share price at the announcement of the Company's strategic review on March 12, 2024. It also represents a premium of approximately 36% to the 52-week volume-weighted average price as of February 4, 2026, and a premium of approximately 3% over IHS Towers' unaffected closing share price of $8.23 on February 4, 2026, when public reports indicated that negotiations with MTN were ongoing. The transaction provides shareholders with an immediate and certain opportunity to realize the value generated since the announcement of the Company's strategic review on March 12, 2024, which was initiated during a period of sustained geopolitical and macroeconomic volatility in key operating markets. IHS Towers' Board of Directors, has unanimously approved the Agreement and the transaction, and resolved to recommend approval of the Agreement and the transaction by IHS Towers' shareholders. MTN has agreed to vote all of its IHS shares in favor of the transaction, and long-term IHS Towers' shareholder, Wendel, has also provided a letter of support to vote in favor of the transaction. With these two shareholders combined, more than 40% shareholder agreement or support has been secured for this proposed transaction to conclude. Upon completion of the transaction, IHS Towers' ordinary shares will no longer be publicly listed, and IHS Towers will become a wholly owned subsidiary of MTN. The transaction is expected to close in 2026, and is subject to certain closing conditions, including shareholder and regulatory approvals. The transaction will be funded through the rollover of MTN's existing approximately 24% fully diluted stake in IHS Towers, together with approximately $1.1B of cash from MTN, approximately $1.1B of cash from IHS Towers' balance sheet, and the rollover of no more than the existing IHS Towers debt. The Company will also be required to have minimum cash of $355M on balance sheet at closing. The Company's ability to satisfy some of these requirements is dependent upon the completion of the sales of both its Latin American tower and fiber operations, announced on February 17, 2026, and February 11, 2026, respectively.
