Bharti Airtel has finalised a $10.7 billion deal to buy Kuwait-based Zain Telecom’s African operations (excluding those in Sudan and Morocco) across 15 countries. While $8.3 billion of the deal amount will be paid upfront, $700 million will be paid within a year. Bharti will also take Zain’s $1.7 billion debt on its books. Bharti has arranged a dollar loan of $7.5 billion and a rupee loan of $1 billion for financing the deal. It has formed two special purpose vehicles (SPVs) in the Netherlands and Singapore to execute the transaction with minimum financial risk. The SPVs will be responsible for repaying the loan amount from the cash flows in Bharti’s African business.
