MTN wins conditional approval for $6.2 billion IHS Towers acquisition
Money MovesNigeria's regulator clears the takeover, requiring MTN to sell 30% of the tower business to local investors
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Overview
Updated 27 minutes agoMTN Group, Africa's largest mobile operator, cleared the biggest regulatory hurdle in its $6.2 billion takeover of IHS Holdings in late August. Nigeria's competition regulator approved the deal on one major condition: MTN must sell up to 30% of the Nigerian tower business to local investors.
The acquisition reverses MTN's decade-old strategy of selling its towers and leasing them back. Complete ownership would put MTN in control of nearly 29,000 towers across Africa, including sites that rivals Airtel and Glo lease to run their own networks.
Why it matters
If the deal closes, MTN controls the towers its rivals lease to keep their networks running in Africa's biggest telecom market.
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People Involved
Organizations Involved
Africa's largest mobile operator, headquartered in Johannesburg, with operations across roughly 20 markets.
Owns and operates about 29,000 telecom towers across Africa, with Nigeria and South Africa its largest markets.
Nigeria's competition regulator, responsible for merger approvals and market conduct.
Timeline
February 2026 August 2026
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MTN confirms clearance, targets H2 2026 close
Latest RegulatoryMTN confirms the FCCPC clearance and says it expects to complete the acquisition in the second half of 2026.
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FCCPC clears deal with 30% sell-down condition
RegulatoryNigeria's competition regulator grants conditional approval, requiring MTN to sell up to 30% of the Nigerian business to local investors.
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IHS shareholders approve the takeover
CorporateIHS shareholders vote in favor at an extraordinary general meeting, clearing the required two-thirds majority.
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MTN launches $6.2 billion bid for IHS Towers
AnnouncementMTN announces an all-cash offer for the IHS stake it does not own, planning to take the tower company private.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
MTN's tower sale-and-leaseback era (2010-2015)
In the early 2010s, MTN and other African operators sold thousands of towers to independent companies like IHS and Helios Towers, then leased space back. The model shifted capital-heavy tower upkeep off operator balance sheets and funded network expansion.
Independent tower companies grew quickly across Africa on the strength of these deals.
Created the tower industry that now dominates African telecom infrastructure, with operators renting rather than owning their sites.
This acquisition reverses MTN's own sale-and-leaseback strategy, putting tower ownership back inside the operator.
Airtel Africa's tower sales to Helios Towers (2019-2020)
Airtel Africa sold tower portfolios in several African markets to Helios Towers and leased them back, using the proceeds to cut debt and fund network upgrades.
Helios expanded its footprint while Airtel strengthened its balance sheet.
Reinforced the industry norm of operators renting towers from independent owners.
Most African operators are still divesting tower assets. MTN is moving against that trend by re-integrating them.
IHS Towers' NYSE debut (2021)
IHS Holding listed on the New York Stock Exchange in one of the largest African tech listings of its time, raising public capital to expand its tower portfolio across Africa.
The listing gave IHS access to public markets for expansion capital.
After barely five years as a public company, this deal takes IHS private again under its largest customer, MTN.
The takeover undoes IHS's public-market journey, folding a NYSE-listed infrastructure firm back into a single operator's control.
