Liquid Telecom CEO talks up Africa expansion

Telecoms company Liquid Telecom has announced ambitious plans to further expand its operations in Africa.

Named among Global Telecoms Business’s 100 most powerful industry figures, Nic Rudnik, CEO of Liquid Telecom, told fDi of his aim “to build Africa’s digital future by connecting every African country onto a fibre network. Country-to-country connectivity has been an insurmountable challenge for Africa. We’re [going to] make it cheap, easy and quick.”

Over the past five years, Liquid Telecom has been heavily involved in Africa’s telecoms infrastructure, particularly in rural areas. It is now the continent’s largest and fastest independent cross-border fibre network, spanning 15 nations with 24,000km of cable across sub-Saharan Africa.

Liquid Telecom’s growth was further boosted this summer when it bought South African operator Neotel for $430m. Once formally approved, this transaction will expand the company’s network to 40,000km of cable.

“For the first time, African companies will be able to connect with each other in a cost-effective and reliable way, all on a single fibre network,” Mr Rudnik said.