(Ecofin Agency) - The opening of its capital with a double IPO on the London and Lagos stock exchanges enabled Airtel Africa to strengthen its cash position by $680 million for the first six months of FY2019/20 financial year, which ended on 30 September 2019.

According to an official statement, the company issued 676.41 million shares, which were widely requested by investors both in London and on the Nigerian financial market. The accumulated cash allowed the telecoms operator to repay a significant portion of its debt ($318 million) and also to pay interest on existing debt ($176 million).

The company ended the period with a solid cash position of $1.21 billion, 4.3 times its outstanding amount for the same period in 2018. The company had a solid pre-tax profit of $312 million, up about 160% compared to the same period in 2018.

Idriss Linge