Icelandic-owned, UK-based private equity firm Novator Partners has acquired an unspecified majority stake in Colombian mobile operator Avantel and launched a restructuring of the business, Reuters reports. The value of the deal has not been disclosed. According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, Avantel operates iDEN and LTE networks and served 2.303 million subscribers at end-December 2019, equivalent to a 3.7% market share.
In December 2019 Partners (representing Novator Partners) successfully bid on spectrum in the 700MHz band and 2500MHz bands in Colombia’s multi-band spectrum auction. Chris Bannister – the former CEO of Novator’s Chilean subsidiary, WOM – subsequently confirmed that he would be spearheading the group’s business in Colombia, and TeleGeography notes that the Avantel website has already been overhauled in a way that is reminiscent of WOM’s visual style.