US private equity firm TPG, majority owner of Apollo Towers Myanmar, has finalised a deal under which it will acquire Apollo’s key rival Pan Asia Majestic Eagle, a 100 per cent foreign-owned Yangon-registered company and the third largest tower owner. Through a two-step cash and share swap transaction, TPG will create a holding company with common ownership of both Apollo and Pan Asia. Currently, Apollo has about 1,800 towers in Myanmar and, with Pan Asia’s 1,200 towers, the holding company will be ahead of the current market leader, Irrawaddy Green Towers, a Middle East-based company with about 2,500 towers. Following TPG’s 100 per cent cash acquisition of Pan Asia and restructuring through a share swap with Apollo’s minority stakeholders, TPG will end up with indirect ownership of both companies. The US firm, which co-founded Apollo Towers with an initial investment of about $40 million in 2014, will eventually hold 80-85 per cent of the new entity.
