According to a press release, the share-based acquisition will see previous Lit Fibre owners Newlight Partners become minority shareholders in CityFibre. The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of this year.
A spokesperson for CityFibre said: “Lit is a vertically integrated altnet, comprising a network builder and internet service provider. It has a current footprint of over 200,000 premises across more than 20 towns in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Worcestershire, Essex and Suffolk. It serves a rapidly growing subscriber base of more than 9,000 retail customers.”
The spokesperson continued: “The acquisition of Lit is the first of several deals CityFibre expects to close over the next two years, and follows [its] decision to pursue altnet acquisitions as a strategic growth driver towards - and potentially beyond - its eight million premises target.”
Lit Fibre has a “significant and complementary network footprint [to CityFibre]", using compatible 10Gbps XGS-PON network architecture.
Chief executive officer at CityFibre, Greg Mesch, said: “Our self-build rollout programme has already delivered more than 3.5 million premises to our partners, and we’re excited to accelerate this even faster through targeted acquisitions like Lit Fibre.
“But competition is not just about scale, it’s about providing partners access to carrier-grade networks that reduce their costs to serve and improve the service experience they can provide their customers.”
He continued: “The UK market needs a third infrastructure platform of scale to ensure competition matures and that it continues to deliver for consumers and the country. Our acquisition of Lit is a clear demonstration of our intent to establish CityFibre as the core of that third platform.”
