Portsmouth firm gets £160m cash injection to bring better broadband to homes in the south

The investment provides toob with the financing to grow its base to more than 120,000 customers and extend its network to more than 300,000 premises, which the company says creates a financially secure platform for growth.

Around £160m of additional funding has been pledged by Ares Management’s Infrastructure Debt strategy, with the option to grow this to £300m over time to support future opportunities.

Nick Parbutt, CEO of toob, said: ‘We are delighted to have the financial support of Ares. This complements the backing we have enjoyed from Amber Infrastructure since late 2018. toob has always focused on delivering for our customers through a simple and compelling broadband proposition. This investment gives us the capital to extend our network and, most importantly, it secures the business through to profitability as a platform for growth.

‘We are very pleased that the business and our team have an exciting future ahead of us as we deliver for more communities across the south of England.”

James Fox, a managing director in Ares’ Infrastructure Debt strategy, added: ‘We are pleased to be partnering with the high-quality teams at toob and Amber to support the continued rollout of toob’s full fibre network to towns across the south of England. This funding aims to help bring enhanced connectivity to historically underserved areas. We look forward to working closely with Nick and the toob management team as they enter the next phase in their development.’