Altafiber—the brand name under which Cincinnati Bell now does business—says it has raised $600 million in new equity funding to expand fiber networks across its footprint in Ohio, Hawaii, Kentucky and Indiana.
The company provides service in Hawaii under the name Hawaiian Telecom, and it expects to have a statewide fiber network built across Hawaii by the end of 2027.
Additionally, altafiber says that by the end of this year, it will complete construction of fiber extensions to every single-family unit within the greater Cincinnati area.
Altafiber said that since going private in late 2021, it has added another roughly 300,000 addresses to its fiber-to-the-premises network, which now totals more than 1.1 million homes passed.
The company is edging out its footprint into new, adjacent markets—which the new funding will help with. Altafiber says its plans to extend its multi-gigabit fiber network to about 400,000 homes in Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. The specific work areas include Butler, Warren and Greene counties in Ohio, plus cities including the greater Dayton area, Dublin, Middletown, Xenia and Waynesville; Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties in Kentucky; and cities including Lawrenceburg and Greendale in Indiana.
Altafiber said that the equity raise came solely from existing investors, supporting co-investors and funds managed by Macquarie Asset Management (which acquired Cincinnati Bell in the go-private transaction in 2021) and Ares Management.
“Gigabit connectivity is essential to access educational, employment, and healthcare opportunities. Robust fiber networks are also powerful economic development tools for business attraction and retention in growing municipalities,” said Leigh Fox, president and CEO of altafiber. “The combination of our operational expertise and this new funding will allow us to continue to invest in fiber, expand our geographic reach, and help to create digital equity in many rural and suburban communities.”
