Saudi Telecom Will Pay $1.3 billion to Purchase United Group Towers

As the carrier grows in Europe, Saudi Telecom Co. has agreed to pay $1.3 billion for a portfolio of tower assets from United Group. According to a statement released on Thursday, the state-backed company's Tawal infrastructure arm is offering funds for a portfolio of more than 4,800 towers in Slovenia, Croatia, and Bulgaria. Prior to this, Bloomberg News reported that an agreement to purchase the assets from United Group, which buyout firm BC Partners have insured, was almost complete. Tawal already holds more than 16,000 towers and is entering the European market for the first time through this acquisition. With plenty of cash, Middle Eastern telecom companies have recently begun to increase their foreign investments, with Emirates Telecommunications Group Co. arising as Vodafone Group Plc's largest shareholder with a roughly $4 billion stake.

The buying of digital infrastructure assets has increased in Europe. In the past year, both Vodafone and Deutsche Telekom AG agreed to sell substantial stakes in their tower businesses to investment firms. This month, Brookfield Asset Management Ltd. agreed to buy data center operator Data4. The United Group's euro bonds due in 2026 saw the biggest increase since they were first issued after news of the divestiture broke. According to CBBT pricing compiled by Bloomberg, they increased 6 cents to 85 cents on the euro, and the company's other bonds also increased. The transaction, which is anticipated to close in the second half of 2023, was advised by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to United Group.