MTN Ghana, a subsidiary of South African mobile telecom giant MTN, has raised a $276 million to finance network expansion, its director said on Wednesday.

MTN Ghana managing director Michael Ikpoki said that Stanbic Bank Ghana and some 16 other local banks would provide 410 million cedis ($216 million), in addition to $60 million from foreign banks.

According to Ikpoki, the syndication, a pioneering initiative, was not only a success but proof that companies do not always have to look outside for investments.

He said the cedi syndication was oversubscribed by 35 per cent while the dollar counterpart was oversubscribed by more than 90 per cent.

The funds would be used to upgrade Ghana’s entire network to 3G and above.

MTN is the leading mobile network operator in Ghana. Its subscriber base hit the 10 million mark in January.