Houlihan Lokey Advises Lit Fibre

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Lit Fibre (Lit), a portfolio company of Newlight Partners, has agreed to be acquired by CityFibre, the UK’s largest independent full fibre platform. The share-based acquisition will see Newlight Partners become minority shareholders in CityFibre and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024.

Lit is a vertically integrated altnet, comprising a network builder and internet service provider (ISP). It has a current footprint of over 200,000 premises across more than 20 towns in Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Worcestershire, Essex, and Suffolk, and serves a rapidly growing subscriber base of more than 9,000 retail customers.

The acquisition of Lit is the first of several deals CityFibre expects to close over the next two years. It follows CityFibre’s decision to pursue altnet acquisitions as a strategic growth driver towards and potentially beyond its 8 million premises target, cementing its position as the UK’s leading wholesale competitor to BT Openreach.

CityFibre will begin to rapidly integrate Lit’s infrastructure into its nationwide, carrier-grade network, including its passive, active, and operational support systems. The integration is expected to be completed later this year, from which point ISPs will be able to access the same market-leading products, pricing, and service experience across the extended footprint.

Lit has a significant and complementary network footprint, which has been deployed to a high standard and uses compatible 10Gbps XGS-PON network architecture. These attributes will help accelerate the speed at which CityFibre is able to integrate Lit’s network and make it available to partners, while proving CityFibre’s ability to maintain the high-quality service it provides its customers.

Greg Mesch, Chief Executive Officer at CityFibre, 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.

“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.”

Joshua Ho-Walker, Partner at Newlight Partners, said: “We are incredibly proud of Lit Fibre’s success in bringing world-class fibre broadband to towns across the UK. This acquisition is an exciting milestone, and we look forward to becoming a shareholder in CityFibre and continuing to help build the UK’s leading full-fibre wholesale platform.”

Tom Williams and Ben Bresler, Co-Founders at Lit Fibre, said: “We are delighted that CityFibre has decided to acquire Lit Fibre, the first in their new targeted acquisition strategy. Just over three years ago, we established Lit to bring internet connections of the highest quality to towns across the UK. Along with our team, we’ve been successful in building an enviable reputation for quality and customer service that our customers rate highly.

“Our efficient build model and reputation for excellent quality and service have been recognised by CityFibre, and we’re looking forward to working with them in the coming months to complete the deal.”

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