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Airtel Africa Ltd, a United Kingdom-incorporated subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, has announced that six global investors will invest $1.25 billion in the company through a primary equity issuance. The investors include Softbank Group International, Warburg Pincus LLC, Temasek Holdings Ltd, and Singtel.

The equity investment will be used to reduce Airtel Africa’s existing debt of about $5 billion and grow its operations in Africa. According to a statement by Airtel Africa, the fundraising values the telecom company at $4.4 billion.

“This primary equity issuance clearly underlines the confidence of leading global investors in Airtel Africa’s successful business strategy and its potential to sustain growth and profitability,” said Raghunath Mandava, MD and CEO of Bharti Airtel – Africa. “The transaction will help us further deleverage our balance sheet and boost our capacity to upgrade networks, expand coverage in different markets and achieve rapid growth of Airtel Money across our operations.”

He added that the current transaction will not involve any sale of shares by existing shareholders. However, the company is planning an initial public offering (IPO) and will use the proceeds to further reduce its debt.

According to Airtel Africa, the investment also reinforces the increased growth potential of Africa’s telecommunications sector. With 4G services live in nine countries, including Nigeria, Airtel Africa is well placed to capture a significant market share of the rapidly growing data demand across African countries.

According to the Nigerian Communications Commission, Airtel Nigeria, the Nigerian unit of Airtel Africa, has over 39 million active users as at the second quarter of 2018. Apart from Nigeria, Airtel operates in 13 African countries, including Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia and Seychelles.