The TowerXchange who’s who: advisory and strategic consulting firms

Evaluating emerging market tower portfolios and towerco business plans is a multi-dimensional ‘black art’ known only to a handful of advisors. In this who’s who, TowerXchange profile 18 advisory firms with African, Latin American or Asian “dirt under their fingernails” when it comes to conducting due diligence on emerging market tower transactions.

Do you need a proven advisor to conduct commercial, financial and/or technical due diligence on a portfolio of towers you’d like to buy?

Perhaps you’re an MNO considering selling your towers and want to invite a third party to evaluate assets or instigate an auction process?

Or maybe you need to hire an experienced consultant to review the investibility of a startup towerco or an established towerco in which you’re considering investing? Perhaps you’re the owner of such a towerco and need some help attracting private equity or debt investors…

TowerXchange focus solely on the emerging market tower industry, and we’ve been collecting the names of companies and individuals most trusted by emerging market towercos, MNOs and investors to lead such assignments.

While everyone featured in this who’s who has been referred by one or other satisfied client, TowerXchange can make no guarantees as to the exhaustiveness of this list, and inclusion does not constitute a ‘recommendation’ – you should certainly ask for and call advisory firms’ past customers and ensure any given advisory firm can meet your needs.

TowerXchange are satisfied that the majority of the most prominent advisors to tower transactions in emerging markets are included in this special feature. However, if you’re seeking an advisor you might also consider reaching out to Gilles Tre-Hardy at Lazard, or Tony Worthington and Ayman Al Adl at Standard Chartered.

We recommend you also read the companion piece to this article, TowerXchange’s Who’s who of law firms with direct experience of advising on tower transactions at https://www.towerxchange.com/data/News/documents/b1qxwnzwzww60w/.

If you would like an introduction to any of the advisors mentioned in either article, please email Kieron Osmotherly, CEO of TowerXchange, at kosmotherly@towerxchange.com

Altman Vilandrie & Company (AV&Co.) is the leading strategy consulting firm focused exclusively on the telecommunications, media and related technology (TMT) sector. Founded in 2002, AV&Co. has 100+ consultants across its Boston, NYC and San Francisco offices, as well as its European partner – Solon Management Consulting – with 50+ consultants in Munich, London and Budapest. The firm assists leading mobile operators, tower providers, wireless infrastructure OEMs as well as all leading TMT PE investors in fast, high-impact and confident decision making.

AV&Co. has extensive tower industry experience spanning tens of engagements (including Latin America, Africa, Asia, N. America, Europe) over 10 years for tower operator strategies as well as tower transaction due diligences. Our recent work has addressed a number of relevant topics such as the impact of small cells, the future opportunity for DAS and the changing role of rooftops.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Soumen Ganguly, Director, Altman Vilandrie & Company

• Mario Quijada, Principal, Altman Vilandrie & Company

Analysys Mason is a global specialist adviser on telecoms, media and technology (TMT), offering both consulting and research to clients across the TMT sector. We have extensive experience of carrying out commercial and technical due diligence on tower transactions across Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Europe and South America, and have conducted due diligence reviews on more than 30 tower transactions worldwide. We have an excellent track record on the buy side, and have also provided strategic support to a number of operators considering tower spin-offs. Analysys Mason has worked for a large proportion of tower companies worldwide and/or their shareholders and lenders, by advising on M&A, debt and equity raising, and other strategic matters. We have also supported operators globally to develop business cases for network sharing, and its implementation.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Marco Cordoni, Senior Partner, Analysys Mason

A.T. Kearney is a leading management consultancy globally, with a very strong practice in the telecoms industry. In the tower space, A.T. Kearney has been very active in advising some of the leading telecoms operators, towercos and private equity / financing investors. Our focus is on helping telecoms operators define a tower outsourcing strategy and structuring negotiations. For towercos, we have worked both on strategy and operational performance improvement. For private equity and financial sponsors, our contributions focus on commercial due diligence.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Laurent Viviez, VP & Partner, A.T. Kearney

Barclays is an international financial services provider engaged in personal banking, credit cards, corporate and investment banking and wealth management with an extensive presence in Europe, the Americas, Africa and Asia. With over 300 years of history and expertise in banking, Barclays operates in over 50 countries and employs approximately 140,000 people. Barclays moves, lends, invests and protects money for customers and clients worldwide.

Barclays’ global investment banking division offers a leading Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) franchise. The TMT team has significant experience representing leading tower operators as well as telecom service providers around the globe on buy and sell side assignments. In this capacity, Barclays has supported its clients in the valuation and/or marketing of tower portfolios as well as the negotiation of various agreements associated with these transactions.

In addition, Barclays facilitates capital raising activities through its leverage finance and ABS franchises, with a particular focus on wireless tower financing.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Diego O. Mahecha, Managing Director, Barclays

Citigroup Global Markets Limited (“Citi”), the global corporate and investment bank, has one of the most preeminent TMT practices and is a leader in M&A advisory and capital raising.

Citi has particularly stand out experience in the towers space, where it has advised MNOs and tower operators on a broad spectrum of transactions. Citi has been particularly strong in the emerging markets, where it has an extraordinarily high market share of successfully concluded deals, including multi geography sale and leaseback transactions for single clients. Citi is also considered a leading and innovative arranger of towers financing.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Gulfrz Qayyum, Managing Director, TMT Investment Banking, Citi

Delta Partners is the leading Advisory and Investment firm specialised in Telecoms, Media and Digital (TMD) industry with offices in the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Asia and Latin America. We partner with global and regional telecom providers, tower operators, digital players and other TMD clients to help them address their most challenging strategic issues.

Delta Partners’ expertise in tower transactions includes M&As, capital raising, due diligence and strategy support to towercos, telecom operators and investors on network sharing, tower monetisation, transaction execution, structuring and operational streamlining.

With more than 200 professionals, the group operates globally and covers the emerging and high-growth economies with a unique approach that combines strategic perspectives with a hands-on pragmatic approach. Delta Partners delivers tangible results to clients and investors through its exclusive sector focus on TMD.

Our unique combination of Management Advisory, Corporate Finance and Investment Services creates unparalleled value for our clients and business partners.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Federico Membrillera, Managing Partner and Head of Corporate Finance, Delta Partners

Deutsche Bank is a leading investment bank, offering a full suite of advisory, capital markets and structured financial products to its global client base. Deutsche Bank has a leading TMT franchise globally and has participated in a number of high-profile transactions in the TMT sector.

In the tower space Deutsche Bank is providing M&A advisory services as well as financing services, including both equity and debt products. Deutsche Bank has been involved in the tower sector on a global basis, successfully executing transactions in North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. On the M&A side Deutsche Bank’s services include transaction preparation and process management, due diligence support, valuation and financial analysis as well as transaction structuring and negotiation. Deutsche Bank furthermore acts as an intermediary between investors and potential private or public issuers of equity and debt products, structuring transactions and facilitating effective capital deployment.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Arnaud Burger, Managing Director, European TMT M&A, Deutsche Bank

• Thomas Kratz, Director, European TMT Coverage, Deutsche Bank

EY is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. The insights and quality services we deliver help build trust and confidence in the capital markets and in economies the world over. We develop outstanding leaders who team to deliver on our promises to all of our stakeholders. In so doing, we play a critical role in building a better working world for our people, for our clients and for our communities.

At EY, we continue to be at the forefront of transactions in the African tower market, successfully completing nine deals on the continent to date and advising on a host of others. We provide our clients the full range of advisory services to ensure a successful transaction from lead M&A advice to commercial, financial and tax due diligence and tax structuring.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Justin Prichard, Director - TMT Corporate Finance, Transaction Advisory Services, EY

• Matt Carter, Partner - Transaction Support, Transaction Advisory Services, EY

Green Ball Wireless Partners, LLC; based in San Antonio, TX US, specialises in brokering the sale or acquisitions of telecom assets, both domestic and international. We’ve done extensive work in the U.S., with some exposure in Asia-Pacific, presently focused on Latin America.  Our expertise includes towers, rooftop installations, and outdoor billboards; with services covering lease acquisition, tower/land purchase, and new site development.

We are a boutique broker firm.  In some case we are a broker of brokers, assuming a purchase opportunity from another party to find a buyer for a deal, or finding a seller for a buyer.

For the past few years we’ve kept a concentrated focus on LATAM, sourcing transaction opportunities across the region at all levels of the industry.  From MNO’s, towercos, including down to the individual landowner or private business entity.  Our goal is to put a deal together, or broker a transaction, all while establishing a win-win proposition for both seller and buyer over the long-term.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Robert O’Shea, Managing Partner, Green Ball Wireless Partners, LLC

Hardiman Telecommunications Ltd. was established in 1994.  We are a boutique consultancy specialised in support of telecommunications investors, telecommunications carriers and governments worldwide.  Our clients include leading private equity funds, the corporate finance / advisory and investment functions of leading global banks, major regional and global telecommunications carriers, towercos and national governments. We span investment, business and technical planning, operations, competitive assessment and performance enhancement.  We are particularly active in end-to-end support of mergers, acquisitions and divestitures.

All of our staff have held senior profit-accountable positions with global telecommunications carriers, manufacturers and systems integration houses prior to joining us.  This allows full support of clients across the continuum from technology through to market effectiveness, spanning engineering, commercial strategy, financial structuring and proven operating methodologies.

Our towers credentials, buy-side and sell-side, include commercial and technical due diligence, operational due diligence, strategy assessment, portfolio optimisation and strategic planning in Europe, Asia and Africa.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Enda Hardiman, Managing Partner, Hardiman Telecommunications

Intelli Towers provides comprehensive tower services including; asset valuations for buyers and sellers of towers; verification of non-documented towers and foundations; and lifetime expansion and capacity extension with the minimum of investment. Intelli Towers also provides supporting consulting and tower supply services.

Intelli Towers Ltd. is partly owned by the Danish engineering design company, KPR Consult A/S, located in Copenhagen – Denmark, a highly competent Engineering group a unique position in Northern Europe as a niche company within the mobile industry serving several of the large operators and vendors as “Owners Engineer” handling Design, Static analyses, Site Sharing / Co-Location Tower Management and Tower supply through approved manufactures.

KPR Consult A/S is a 100% independently company within its field having its own comprehensive, innovative tower and foundation analysing software and management system.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Henrik Kamstrup, CEO, Intelli Towers

Intrepid Advisory Partners is an independent advisory firm with a particular focus on wireless infrastructure.  Intrepid provides direct senior involvement and also leverages the experience of its senior advisor network to provide clients with a differentiated solution.  Managing Partner, Daniel Lee, also serves as TowerXchange’s Chairman.

Intrepid has unparalleled expertise in the wireless infrastructure space across the emerging markets.  Intrepid principals have advised on most of the tower transactions in Africa to date working with a variety of mobile operators including MTN, Millicom and Cell C.  Intrepid principals have also worked with each of the Big 3 towercos in Africa in various fund raising initiatives.

Intrepid works with some of the largest tower operators globally as well as very early stage companies.  We work across a variety of emerging markets in Africa, Latin America and Asia as well as more developed markets.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Daniel Lee, Managing Partner, Intrepid Advisory Partners

Media Venture Partners (“MVP”), is a San Francisco-based telecommunications, media and technology (TMT) focused investment banking firm.  Since our founding 27 years ago, MVP has advised on over $16 billion worth of transactions with hundreds of sellers.  MVP’s tower industry experience dates back to 1997, when the wireless tower industry as we know it today was beginning to form in the U.S.   As a team, we have closed on nearly 150 tower transactions ranging from private equity-backed tower developers, to wireless carrier and broadcaster sale-leasebacks, to working on behalf of smaller, closely-held businesses in the sale of their tower assets.  We are experts in the tower industry and can assist with divesting of business holdings, financing your company’s growth plans, or provide market valuation services for your assets or business.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Clayton Funk, Managing Director, Media Venture Partners

Mott MacDonald is a word-class employee-owned management, engineering and development consultancy with global experience, local insight, and a multi-sector perspective. Our 14,000 staff operate in 140 countries through our global network of offices – with various in Africa including Johannesburg, Durban, Cape Town, Gabarone, Kampala, Lagos and Lusaka. In 2014 we were named overall Global Technical Advisor of the Year for the fifth time in six years by Infrastructure Journal.

Our Technology and Communications team offers a unique blend of business and technology expertise; providing an independent perspective on many markets and technologies and successfully delivering projects to leading financial advisors, lenders, operators, equipment vendors, governments and regulators. Our towerco expertise spans, in particular, strategy development, due diligence (commercial and technical) and operational assessment – and we have recently delivered various assignments in these areas. As an example, we have been engaged as commercial and technical due diligence providers for tower asset transactions involving a total of over 20,000 towers across 19 countries in Africa, working with most of the major towerco’s and operators – providing us with unrivalled knowledge and experience.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

Dave Tanner, Chris Pollard, Simon Clayton-Mitchell and Ed Siegle, Mott MacDonald

Standard Bank. They call it Africa. We call it home.

Rooted in Africa with strategic representation in key sub-Saharan and other emerging markets, Standard Bank is a bank with a global reach. Standard Bank has a footprint which spans 20 countries across the African continent, including South Africa, and 13 countries outside Africa, including China and Brazil, which are key to our cross border strategy and success.

Standard Bank has a long history in the telecommunications and media sector, having concluded the first major telecommunications transaction in 1998. We work with major multinational and regional operators across the entire spectrum of TMT as they expand across Africa and beyond, as well as with smaller players that are developing a vibrant industry on the continent.

Standard Bank has been active in the tower infrastructure sharing sector since its inception in Africa and has led over 15 transactions across financing and advisory over the past 3-4 years.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Nina Triantis, Managing Director, Global Head of Telecoms & Media, Standard Bank

TAP Advisors is a leading boutique investment bank, with particular expertise and focus in the telecommunications sector and a long history of working on mobile and broadcasting tower situations.  As an independent advisor, TAP provides our clients with impartial, objective and strategic advice regarding M&A and financing transactions.

Our most recently announced tower deal was the sale of AT&T’s US mobile tower portfolio to Crown Castle for US$4.8bn, where TAP acted as AT&T’s lead advisor.  We also acted as advisor to Deutsche Telekom in connection with the US$2.5bn monetisation of the TMO USA towers portfolio.

With offices in New York and London, TAP’s senior professionals have advised MNOs around the world on the sale of their mobile tower portfolios, have worked on tower transactions in over 25 markets globally to date, and have a unique level of knowledge and understanding regarding the intricacies of such transactions and the distinct regional factors that impact those deals.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• David Lowham, Partner, TAP Advisors (for Americas)

• Bill Kennish, Managing Director, TAP Advisors (for EMEA)

TIA has history in network design and optimisation, facility condition assessment, asset planning and maintenance solutions, asset audits and FAR creation, creating accurate FAR’s for some of the largest operator groups in Africa.

TIA focuses on conducting full asset walkdowns of ALL telecommunication assets including RF equipment and sites, switching centres and IT/ Switching equipment and warehousing facilities and inventory. Unique quality checking methods and processes guarantee data accuracy and completeness, allowing the towerco and Operator to be confident in the ssset value in any towerco transaction.

A six step process ensures that every data field captured is verifiable and accurate:

• Bespoke data collection matrixes

• Remote interrogation and verification of active assets

• Digitisation of passive information at source and tagging of assets

• Centralised data storage, verification and analysis

• Automated FAR generation

• FAR maintenance and operational maintenance

All working together to ensure 4 Sigma asset data accuracy for operators and towercos.

Point(s) of contact for emerging market towers:

• Lance Dickerson, CEO, TIA Telecom

PT Wellington Capital Advisory (WCA) is a privately-held, fully-independent professional services firm, with offices in Jakarta and Singapore We assist clients to develop and leverage significant investments in the TMT (Technology, Media & Telecoms) space within Indonesia and throughout SE Asia, with particular emphasis on opportunities in the rapidly-evolving tower industry.

WCA comprises a team of highly-credentialed sector experts, with extensive TMT operating experience including the successful completion of infrastructure transactions totaling 20,000 towers. Our deal origination service combines rigorous market, financial and investment analyses with exhaustive commercial, technical and financial due diligence processes.

Working with WCA also provides access to our network of fully-vetted, in-region business partners, professional advisory specialists and investor groups.

WCA manages the entire investment cycle on behalf of network operators, tower companies, PE firms and investment banks who are seeking to participate in the rapidly-maturing TMT markets throughout SE Asia.

Points of contact for emerging market towers:

• David Burke and Geoffrey Simms (Jakarta office)

• Dave Shuker and Paul Hemming (Singapore office)

TowerXchange also presents a matrix tracking which specific disciplines each advisor specialises in. Different advisors are more focused on sellside, buyside, or on raising capital and advising PE or debt investors; while you may need different advisors for commercial, technical and financial due diligence. 

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