BT announced that it has reached an agreement for the sale of selected domestic operations and infrastructure in 16 countries in Latin America to CIH Telecommunications Americas LLC (‘CIH’), an affiliate of CIH Technology Holdings. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to complete during this calendar year.
BT will retain a strong presence in the region after the sale, delivering next-generation networking, cloud and security services to multinational customers across 21 countries.
The transaction is part of BT’s ongoing transformation of its Global unit and will deliver continuity and growth opportunities for customers and employees in the region. BT and CIH have also entered into wholesale and reseller agreements, under which CIH will act as a regional channel for BT’s products and services and continue to supply domestic connectivity services to BT.
Assets and operations in the scope of the transaction delivered revenue of £110m to BT in fiscal year 2018/19. They include two owned fibre networks with total length of 650km, 2000km of leased fibre lines, four data centres and five teleports. The divested business is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.
“Today’s announcement is a key milestone in the execution of our strategy to become a more agile and focused business. It comes at a particularly challenging time for the global economy. As such, it is a sign of our determination to keep the business moving forward and continue connecting communities, businesses and governments. I am pleased to begin a new chapter in the region with CIH, providing continuity for our people and our customers,” said Bas Burger, CEO of Global, BT.
“We are very excited to be re-entering global telecommunications after having successfully focused on the technology sector over a number of years. We have considerable experience in the region and the sector, and greatly look forward to growing the business and providing the highest level of service to all customers in the region, including BT. The acquired business fits very well with our strategy and existing global portfolio,” said George Kappaz, CIH’s Chairman.
BT and CIH have agreed not to disclose the terms of the purchase, which were agreed to in March 2020.