New York, USA – Liquid Telecommunications, an African fibre company, is set to raise $225 million in equity by the end of the year, with a significant portion of the investment coming from a U.S. development agency, according to CEO Hardy Pemhiwa.
The International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), a U.S. government agency, will be one of the largest investors, contributing to a $90 million tranche expected in the coming weeks. A second funding round is planned later in the year.
This investment is part of the growing geopolitical competition between the U.S. and China in Africa, a continent with a rapidly growing population and vast mineral resources. Development institutions like the DFC are crucial tools for the U.S. to increase its economic engagement on the continent. Africa remains the least connected region in the world, but digital services are helping to bridge infrastructure gaps across the continent.
The new funding will assist Liquid Telecommunications in addressing looming loan and bond repayments, including a $156 million equivalent term loan and $620 million in bonds due in 2026.
Liquid is also collaborating with U.S. tech giants Microsoft and Google on broadband projects in East Africa. The partnership with Microsoft aims to provide affordable broadband to 20 million Africans in Kenya and Zambia through last-mile connections, Pemhiwa said.
Additionally, the company is working with Google to expand terrestrial fibre infrastructure across South Africa, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. This network will enhance connectivity to data centres and offer an alternative route for traffic in case of subsea cable outages between South Africa and Kenya.
To date, Liquid Telecommunications has laid over 110,000 kilometres of fibre across Africa, responding to the growing demand for high-speed internet and data storage solutions.