Airtel Africa trading on LSE and NSE

RNS Number : 9827E

Airtel Africa PLC

09 July 2019

 

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, INDIA, NIGERIA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION WHERE IT IS UNLAWFUL TO DISTRIBUTE THIS ANNOUNCEMENT.

Neither this announcement nor anything contained herein shall form the basis of, or be relied upon in connection with, any offer or announcement whatsoever in any jurisdiction. Investors should not subscribe for or purchase any ordinary shares (the "Shares") referred to in this announcement except on the basis of information in the prospectus (the "Prospectus") published by Airtel Africa plc (the "Company", and together with its subsidiaries and subsidiary undertakings, the "Group" or "Airtel Africa") on 17 June 2019, in connection with the proposed admission of its ordinary shares to the premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority ("UK Admission") and to trading on the main market of London Stock Exchange plc (the "London Stock Exchange") and secondary listing on the Official Trading list of the Nigerian Stock Exchange ("Nigerian Admission" and together with UK Admission, "Admission"). A copy of the Prospectus is available for inspection from the Company's registered office at First Floor, 53/54 Grosvenor Street, London, W1K 3HU and on the Company's website at www.airtel.africa/investors, subject to certain access restrictions.

Airtel Africa plc

Admission to trading on the London Stock Exchange and on the Nigerian Stock Exchange

Following its announcement on 28 June 2019 of the offer price of its initial public offer (the "Offer"), Airtel Africa is pleased to announce that its entire issued ordinary share capital comprising 3,758,151,504 Shares has been admitted to the premium listing segment of the Official List of the Financial Conduct Authority and to trading on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange under the ticker "AAF" and on the Official Trading list of the Nigerian Stock Exchange under the ticker "AIRTELAFRI."  Unconditional trading of the Shares commenced on the London Stock Exchange on 3 July 2019 and has commenced on the Nigerian Stock Exchange today.

As at 9 July 2019, the Company's total issued voting share capital consists of 3,758,151,504 Shares of US$0.50 each, each with one vote. The Company does not hold any Shares in Treasury.  Accordingly, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 3,758,151,504, which may be used by shareholders (and others with notification obligations) as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in, the Company under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

Enquiries

Airtel Africa plc                                                                                                    

·      Pier Falcione                                                                                           [phone]

Public relations advisor to Airtel Africa

Kekst CNC

·      Harald Kinzler                                                                                         [phone]

·      Katherine Fennell                                                                                    [phone]

Sole Sponsor, Joint Global Co-ordinator and Joint Bookrunner

J.P. Morgan Cazenove                                                                                            [phone]

·      Barry Meyers

·      Bill Hutchings

·      Guillaume Petit-Perrin

Joint Global Co-ordinators and Joint Bookrunners

BofA Merrill Lynch                                                                                                [phone]

·      Emmanuel Hibou

·      Raj Balakrishnan

·      Samuel Losada Borrajo

·      Raj Batra

Citigroup                                                                                                                 [phone]

·      Ken Robins

·      Gulfraz Qayyum

·      Roger Barb

·      Chuba Ezenwa

Joint Bookrunners

Absa                                                                                                                       [phone]

Barclays                                                                                                                 [phone]

BNP Paribas                                                                                                           [phone]

Goldman Sachs International                                                                                 [phone]

HSBC                                                                                                                     [phone]

Standard Bank                                                                                                        [phone]

Nigerian Joint Issuing Houses

Barclays Securities Nigeria Limited                                                                        [phone]

Feyi Olusanya

Quantum Zenith Capital & Investments Limited    

Eferetin Erhabor                                                                                                      [phone]

Note:

As at the date of this announcement the Company also has 50,000 non-voting redeemable deferred shares of £1.00 each and 3,081,744,577 non‑voting deferred shares of US$0.50 in issue.

Important legal information

The information contained in this announcement is for background purposes only and does not purport to be full or complete. No reliance may be placed by any person for any purpose on the information contained in this announcement or its accuracy, fairness or completeness. 

This announcement is not for publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States (including its territories and possessions, any State of the United States and the District of Columbia), Australia, Canada, Japan, India, Nigeria or any other jurisdiction where to do so would constitute a violation of the relevant laws of such jurisdiction. The distribution of this announcement may be restricted by law in certain jurisdictions and persons into whose possession any document or other information referred to herein comes should inform themselves about and observe any such restriction. Any failure to comply with these restrictions may constitute a violation of the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. 

This announcement does not constitute or form a part of any offer or solicitation to purchase or subscribe for, or otherwise invest in, securities in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, India, or in any jurisdiction to whom or in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful. The Shares referred to herein may not be offered or sold in the United States unless registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 (the "Securities Act") or offered in a transaction exempt from, or not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. The Shares referred to herein may not be offered or sold in Nigeria unless registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Nigeria pursuant to the Nigerian Investments and Securities Act of 2007 (the "ISA"). The offer and sale of Shares referred to herein has not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or under the applicable securities laws of Australia, Canada or Japan. Subject to certain exceptions, the Shares referred to herein may not be offered or sold in Australia, Canada or Japan or to, or for the account or benefit of, any national, resident or citizen of Australia, Canada or Japan. There will be no public offer of the Shares in the United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, or elsewhere.  

In any member state of the European Economic Area ("EEA") other than the United Kingdom (each, a "Relevant Member State"), this announcement and any offer if made subsequently is directed only at persons who are "qualified investors" ("Qualified Investors") within the meaning of the Prospectus Directive (Directive 2003/71/EC and any amendments thereto, including Directive 2010/73/EU), and any implementing measures in each Relevant Member State (the "Prospectus Directive"). 

This announcement may include statements that are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms "believes", "estimates", "plans", "projects", "anticipates", "expects", "intends", "may", "will" or "should" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology, or by discussions of strategy, plans, objectives, goals, future events or intentions. Forward-looking statements may and often do differ materially from actual results. Any forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current view with respect to future events and are subject to risks relating to future events and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to the Company's business, results of operations, financial position, liquidity, prospects, growth and strategies. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. 

Each of the Company and J.P. Morgan Securities plc (which conducts its United Kingdom investment banking activities as J.P. Morgan Cazenove), Citigroup Global Markets Limited, Merrill Lynch International, Absa Bank Limited, Barclays Bank PLC, acting through its investment bank, BNP Paribas, Goldman Sachs International, HSBC Bank plc and The Standard Bank of South Africa Limited (the "Banks") and their respective affiliates as defined under Rule 501(b) of Regulation D of the Securities Act ("affiliates"), expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update, review or revise any forward looking statement contained in this announcement whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. 

The information in this announcement is subject to change. Before subscribing for or purchasing any Shares, persons viewing this announcement should ensure that they fully understand and accept the risks set out in the Prospectus. No reliance may be placed for any purpose on the information contained in this announcement or its accuracy or completeness. This announcement does not constitute or form part of any offer or invitation to sell or issue, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase or subscribe for any Shares or any other securities nor shall it (or any part of it) or the fact of its distribution, form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract therefor. 

Acquiring investments to which this announcement relates may expose an investor to a significant risk of losing all of the amount invested. Persons considering making such investments should consult an authorised person specialising in advising on such investments.

None of the Banks or any of their respective directors, officers, employees, advisers or agents accepts any responsibility or liability whatsoever for/or makes any representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the truth, accuracy or completeness of the information in this announcement (or whether any information has been omitted from the announcement) or any other information relating to the Company, its subsidiaries or associated companies, whether written, oral or in a visual or electronic form, and howsoever transmitted or made available or for any loss howsoever arising from any use of the announcement or its contents or otherwise arising in connection therewith. 

Each of the Banks is acting exclusively for the Company and no-one else in connection with the Offer. They will not regard any other person as their respective clients in relation to the Offer and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to their respective clients, nor for providing advice in relation to the Offer, the contents of this announcement or any transaction, arrangement or other matter referred to herein. 

Each of J.P. Morgan Securities plc, Merrill Lynch International, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, Barclays Bank PLC, HSBC Bank plc, BNP Paribas and Goldman Sachs International is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority and the Financial Conduct Authority in the United Kingdom. 

In connection with the Offer, each of the Banks and any of their respective affiliates, may take up a portion of the Shares as a principal position and in that capacity may retain, purchase, sell, offer to sell or otherwise deal for their own accounts in such Shares and other securities of the Company or related investments in connection with the Offer or otherwise. Accordingly, references in the Prospectus to the Shares being issued, offered, subscribed, acquired, placed or otherwise dealt in should be read as including any issue or offer to, or subscription, acquisition, placing or dealing by any of the Banks and any of their respective affiliates acting in such capacity. In addition, the Banks and any of their respective affiliates may enter into financing arrangements (including swaps or contracts for differences) with investors in connection with which they may from time to time acquire, hold or dispose of Shares. None of the Banks nor any of their respective affiliates intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligations to do so. 

In connection with the Offer, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, as stabilisation manager (the "Stabilisation Manager"), or any of its agents, may (but will be under no obligation to), to the extent permitted by applicable law, over-allot Shares or effect other transactions with a view to supporting the market price of the Shares at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail in the open market. The Stabilisation Manager is not required to enter into such transactions and such transactions may be effected on any stock market, over-the-counter market, stock exchange or otherwise and may be undertaken at any time during the period commencing on the date of the commencement of conditional dealings of the Shares on the London Stock Exchange and ending no later than 30 calendar days thereafter. However, there will be no obligation on the Stabilisation Manager or any of its agents to effect stabilising transactions and there is no assurance that stabilising transactions will be undertaken. Such stabilising measures, if commenced, may be discontinued at any time without prior notice. In no event will measures be taken to stabilise the market price of the Shares above the offer price. Save as required by law or regulation, neither the Stabilisation Manager nor any of its agents intends to disclose the extent of any over-allotments made and/or stabilisation transactions conducted in relation to the Offer.

In connection with the Offer, the Stabilisation Manager, may, for stabilisation purposes, over-allot Shares up to a maximum of 10% of the total number of Shares comprised in the Offer. For the purposes of allowing it to cover short positions resulting from any such over-allotments and/or from sales of Shares effected by it during the stabilisation period, the Stabilisation Manager will enter into over-allotment arrangements with certain existing shareholders (the "Over-Allotment Option") pursuant to which the Stabilisation Manager may subscribe for or procure subscribers for additional Shares up to a maximum of 10% of the total number of Shares comprised in the Offer (the "Over-Allotment Shares") at the offer price. The Over-Allotment Option will be exercisable in whole or in part, upon notice by the Stabilisation Manager, at any time on or before the 30th calendar day after the commencement of conditional trading of the Shares on the London Stock Exchange. Any Over-allotment Shares made available pursuant to the Over-Allotment Option, including for all dividends and other distributions declared, made or paid on the Shares, will be subscribed for on the same terms and conditions as the Shares being issued in the Offer and will form a single class for all purposes with the other Shares.

Information to Distributors

Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that the Shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, distributors should note that: the price of the Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Offer. Furthermore, it is noted that, notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, the Joint Bookrunners will only procure investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties. 

For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the Shares. 

Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.

 

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