KINGSTON, Jamaica—Caribbean mobile service provider Digicel Group plc said it raised $150 million through a corporate bond effort led by Citigroup and J.P. Morgan Chase.
The bond was priced at a yield of 8.625 percent, and Digicel said it plans to use the capital to expand operations in Haiti and Trinidad/Tobago. The operator said it had already invested $130 in Haiti, which has a population of 8.5 million people but a combined wired and wireless penetration of only 5.7 percent.
Digicel, which was founded by Irish entrepreneur Denis O’Brien, has gained significant traction in the region since its launch in 2001. The operator last year acquired the Caribbean and Bermuda assets of Cingular Wireless L.L.C., and earlier this year expanded to Martinique, Guadeloupe and French Guiana with the $192 million acquisition of Bouygues Telecom Caraibe.
“We will continue to aggressively expand our services in Trinidad & Tobago and Haiti, as we have seen tremendous acceptance by our mobile customers in these markets,” said Colm Delves, chief executive officer of Digicel Group. “We are delighted that, yet again, the international investment community has demonstrated its strong confidence in our growth strategy and current expansion efforts.”
