Vuma CEO Dietlof Mare.

South African fibre provider, Vumatel has acquired a 45% non-controlling stake in Herotel, a significant fixed wireless ISP and meaningful player in the local Fibre to the Home (FTTH) industry.

According to a statement released by the companies, Herotel’s footprint covers over 150,000 homes and business users to the internet across more than 400 towns and cities.

The companies add that the acquisition “will accelerate Herotel’s vision of bridging South Africa’s digital divide, fostering economic growth and connecting more of the country’s secondary communities.”

Vuma CEO Dietlof Mare says, “Herotel will benefit from this deal by immediately being able to continue its plans for the deployment of fibre connectivity solutions in South Africa’s secondary cities and towns – effectively allowing more people throughout the country to access unlimited high-speed internet.”

“Most importantly, this investment has the future potential to unlock even greater opportunities for both Vuma and Herotel to access, connect and uplift more communities in the future, connect even more schools to unlimited fibre connectivity, and empower lives throughout the country.”

“Vuma will continue building, owning, and operating high-speed Fibre-to-the-Home networks using a wholesale open-access model. Vuma’s model has so far passed just under 1.5 million homes and deployed over 31,000 kilometres of fibre infrastructure across South Africa” says Mare.

Francois Wessels, Chief Financial Officer at Herotel, adds, “Herotel‘s vision is to connect as many South African communities to faster, more affordable internet as possible, and we’re confident that this deal will help accelerate this vision.”

“We believe that Vumatel is as dedicated as we are to bridging the digital divide in building world-class infrastructure that will allow more communities throughout the country access to high-speed, abundant internet access.”

Herotel was founded in 2014 and has since become a significant player in fixed wireless internet service provider and a prominent player in the South African market.

“This transaction represents yet another significant milestone in the rollout of fibre connectivity into some of the most vulnerable and unconnected areas of our country and will help narrow the digital divide and contribute to a more inclusive economy with greater access to digital opportunities, says Raymond Ndlovu, CEO at CIVH.