GTCR-backed RBI completes add-on acquisition

Rural Broadband Investments, a portfolio company of GTCR, has completed the acquisition of City Cable from The City of Poplar Bluff, Missouri. No financial terms were disclosed. RBC Capital Markets advised RBI and GTCR on the transaction.

PRESS RELEASE

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Rural Broadband Investments (“RBI”) today announced it has closed the acquisition of City Cable from The City of Poplar Bluff, Missouri. The acquisition comes shortly after RBI’s initial platform investment in NewWave Communications (“NewWave”) and the follow-on acquisitions of Cable Management Associates (“CMA”) and the McDonald Cable/Cablevison systems (“McDonald”).
Since April 2013, RBI has made five acquisitions in an effort to build a platform of 300,000-400,000 cable subscribers in small-to-mid sized rural markets. RBI now serves approximately 150,000 customers and passes more than 430,000 homes in Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Nevada.
RBI expects a seamless transition for customers from the former Poplar Bluff operations. RBI plans to roll out enhanced services already available in its nearby NewWave markets.
“The Poplar Bluff system is an excellent add-on to our Southern Missouri footprint,” said Phil Spencer, CEO of Rural Broadband Investments. “We intend to fiber tie the system and offer more HD channels, advanced commercial services and a more robust internet service. This will give us an exceptional opportunity to better serve customers and increase penetration of high-speed internet services as well as advanced commercial services. We look forward to serving the residents of Poplar Bluff.”
“The City Cable system has been a tremendous asset for the citizens of Poplar Bluff. We would not have had the technology that City Cable brought to our community in 2001 without the foresight of the City Council to build this state of the art system,” according to Mayor Ed DeGaris. “It is becoming more and more difficult for small cable providers to keep up with that technology at an affordable rate, and the City of Poplar Bluff has a golden opportunity to provide enhanced cable and internet services to its citizens through the sale of our system to a quality provider with approximately 150,000 subscribers. We can look forward to more cable options, more HD channels and faster internet speeds. We are excited to welcome NewWave and Rural Broadband Investments to our community.”
RBI is a portfolio company of leading private equity firm GTCR, and is owned by GTCR and RBI management.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal counsel and PriceWaterhouseCoopers served as accounting advisor to GTCR. RBC Capital Markets acted as exclusive financial advisor to RBI and GTCR.
About GTCR
Founded in 1980, GTCR is a leading private equity firm focused on investing in growth companies in the Financial Services & Technology, Healthcare and Information Services & Technology industries. The Chicago-based firm pioneered The Leaders Strategy™ – finding and partnering with management leaders in core domains to identify, acquire and build market-leading companies through transformational acquisitions and organic growth. Since its inception, GTCR has invested more than $10 billion in over 200 companies. For more information, please visit www.gtcr.com.
About Rural Broadband Investments
Rural Broadband Investments, headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas, acquires and invests in rural-focused cable systems serving residential and commercial customers in small-to-middle sized markets and rural geographies. For more information, please visit www.ruralbroadbandinvestments.com.