Airband secures additional investment from abrdn to accelerate rural broadband expansion across West of England

The inclusive broadband provider will bolster its extensive FTTP and FWA footprint in the region.

Airband, the inclusive broadband provider that brings superfast connections to coastal and country communities, has announced its majority shareholder, abrdn, has committed significant further capital to support its commercialisation effort.

To date, abrdn has invested over £200m to growing the Airband business, which now covers c.315,000 properties (of which c.230,000 are Ready for Service) across seven counties in the West of England and already serves over 19,000 customers.

The additional commitment follows the conclusion of a detailed review of Airband’s business strategy, under which the business will focus on maximising its current assets. abrdn’s investment and ongoing commitment to Airband sits alongside a £100m senior debt package secured in 2021 from an international banking consortium.

Ian Fishwick, Chair of Airband said:

“Airband has built one of the largest rural altnets in the UK and provided service to many remote areas where we are now the only provider of Gigabit connectivity. As we all move to hybrid working, the shift in society depends on high-speed connectivity. For decades, young families have left rural areas to seek work. By giving families a chance to work from home in rural areas, we hope we contribute to a huge long-term shift in the prosperity of village life. The ongoing support of both abrdn and our banks allows us to concentrate on growing our customer base as quickly as possible.”

Dominic Helmsley, Head of abrdn Infrastructure said:

“Over the past three years, we have worked alongside and supported Airband in expanding their network across rural parts of West England. Despite numerous industrial headwinds, Airband has proven its ability to deliver network deployment in challenging and highly defensive rural areas of the country, and our sustained financial commitment to the business reflects our dedication to supporting the reduction of the digital divide across the UK as the business continues to focus on attracting customers.”