T-Mobile US to raise extra $3bn for 5G spectrum across the country

T-Mobile U.S. announced that they will raise $3 billion in funding in attempts to fuel their 5G endeavor and increase their spectrum for next generation networks.

So far, the U.S. operator have splurged a whopping $78 billion on mid-band spectrum at the country’s current 5G auction. Bidding is conducted anonymously, as their identities will only be revealed when the deal is finally struck.

The increased investments are a sign of critical important in securing 5G spectrum for the country’s top three operators, as analysts and sources familiar with the deal estimate that it will garner around $50 billion in investments. 

T-Mobile agreed to sell $3 billion of promissory notes and bonds, up from the original $2 billion that it had planned to raise.

“T-Mobile US has agreed to sell $1 billion aggregate principal amount of 2.250 percent Senior Notes due 2026 (the “2026 notes”), $1 billion aggregate principal amount of 2.625 percent Senior Notes due 2029 (the “2029 notes”) and $1 billion aggregate principal amount of 2.875 percent Senior Notes due 2031 in a registered public offering. The offering of the notes is scheduled to close on January 14, 2021, subject to satisfaction of customary closing conditions,” T-Mobile said in a statement to the press.

The US’ mid-band 5G auction will place 280MHz of C-band spectrum on the block. C-Band spectrum offers the dual benefits of high data transfer rates with better propagation ranges than mmWave spectrum.

While operators in Europe and Asia have launched their 5G offerings using mid-band spectrum, US operators were forced to launch with a combination of low band and mmWave, which has led to patchy coverage. US operators are therefore extremely keen to land their preferred allocations of C-band spectrum.

Bidding began in December and then took a brief break over the Christmas period, before resuming again on the 4th of January.