Safaricom opts issuing Green Bond to fund more projects

Safaricom Plc is considering a green bond as a funding option even as it nears commercial roll-out in Ethiopia this year, according to Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa.

A green bond is a type of fixed-income instrument that is specifically earmarked to raise money for climate and environmental projects and backed by the issuing entity’s balance sheet.

“It is certainly top of our agenda .You have to have structured something for you to get regulatory approval,” peter Ndegwa said when releasing the Q1 results.

The telecom said they are in talks with the Nairobi Securities Exchange and regulators, including the Capital Markets Authority, as it weighs the amount and timing for the issuance.

“There’s a lot of encouragement for us to look at that as a possible option, but we need to really look at it in terms of the funding requirements that we have and how that fits into our overall strategy,” Chief Finance Officer Dilip Pal.

Safaricom also added they expect to conclude a deal with Ethiopia’s state-owned carrier Ethiotel before the end of May on issues including interconnecting transmission and tower sharing.

Shares of the Telcom fell as much as 4.3% on Thursday, to the lowest in about one and a half years.