UFINET, a dark fiber provider in Latin America, today announced an agreement to acquire a majority stake in NB Telecom, one of the largest carriers in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Specifically, NB Telecom operates a 310+ route mile (500+ route kilometer) fiber network that connects all major data centers, points-of-presence (PoPs), and office buildings in the city.
UFINET is backed by Cinven, a private equity firm, through its Sixth Fund, which owns 79% of the company. Additionally, Enel, an Italian utility company, owns the remaining 21% of UFINET.
Finally, closing of UFINET’s acquisition of NB Telecom will occur in the coming weeks.
NB Telecom – Overview
NB Telecom is a Rio de Janeiro-headquartered telecommunications carrier. Specifically, the company connects both domestic and international telecom operators (i.e., other carriers) and internet service providers (ISPs). NB Telecom provides these companies with access to, and capillarity in, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
NB Telecom’s wholesale services include point-to-point metro connectivity, dark fiber, IP Transit, access to Brazil’s main internet exchange (IX.br), and colocation.
Fiber Infrastructure
NB Telecom’s 310+ route mile (500+ route kilometer) fiber network in Rio de Janeiro includes both aerial and underground capillarity. Indeed, this network connects all major data centers, points-of-presence (PoPs), and office buildings in the city.
For example, NB Telecom has points-of-presence (PoPs) in Equinix’s main Rio de Janeiro data centers, RJ1 and RJ2. Additionally, the company has PoPs at GlobeNet’s subsea cable landing station, DC Ultranet, and Lumen Technologies, in Rio de Janeiro.
UFINET – Scaling Up in Brazil
UFINET is a dark fiber provider with more than 46.6k route miles (75k route kilometers) of optical fiber deployed in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and Chile.
Transaction Rationale – UFINET Acquires NB Telecom
UFINET, through NB Telecom, is entering Brazil’s second-largest fiber market and one of Latin America’s key business hubs in Rio de Janeiro. Beyond the initial acquisition, UFINET intends to further expand NB Telecom’s fiber network to increase its footprint in Brazil.
Notably, UFINET’s tie-up with NB Telecom is the company’s second acquisition in Brazil. Indeed, in 2019, the company purchased São Paulo-based Netell to gain entry into the country.
Fiber Infrastructure
Overall, UFINET owns major metropolitan networks in Latin America’s most important cities. Indeed, the company’s network connects 45.0k+ on-net buildings, 5.0k+ towers, 1.0k+ towers/poles leased for wireless carrier base stations, and 200k+ homes passed with neutral fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) across Latin America.
