Borderlink gets £164 million fund for fibre rollout up north

Specialist asset management company Gresham House has invested £165 million into broadband provider Borderlink to boost its broadband expansion in Scotland and the North of England.

This follows an April £10.5m investment from Gresham House into Borderlink, which trades as GoFibre, as part of its ‘British Strategic Investment Fund’. Borderlink says the funds will enable it to connect up to 500,000 homes in the regions to gigabit-capable speeds over the next three years.

Borderlink plans to recruit another 100 employees on top of 70 hired since April and open new offices in Berwick-upon-Tweed and Edinburgh. Meanwhile there is a changing of the guard at the top, as Chris Jagusz replaces John Seed as chairman of the firm, and Stevie Ingamells from Gresham House joins the board as director.

“This investment allows us to bring GoFibre broadband to the people who have been left behind by the larger networks, ensuring that those in rural areas and towns have the ability to access the best broadband speeds and live their digital lives fully,” said Alex Cacciamani, Borderlink CEO. “We’re delighted that Gresham House recognise the importance of ensuring local people are connected and have committed to this long term partnership.”

Peter Bachmann, managing director of Sustainable Infrastructure at Gresham House and Fund Manager of BSIF, added: “Alex and the GoFibre team have impressed us with their ambition, teamwork and ability to deliver on their plans. This is the largest investment the BSIF has made in fibre infrastructure which is testament to our confidence in Borderlink’s plans. I would like to thank John Seed for his great contribution in maturing the company and we look forward to working with Chris and the team moving forward.”

In July Borderlinks joined the trade body INCA (Independent Networks Cooperative Association) alongside Freedom Fibre, Giganet, Spring Fibre, Save9, Toob, F&W Networks and Cityfibre. The boom in membership was credited to a ramp up of fibre rollouts across the country, and serves as a signifier of the increasing activity and investment interest in hooking up the UK to gigabit speeds.