ntel, the telecom brand owned by NatCom Development & Investment Limited (NATCOM), has secured fresh undisclosed funding to relaunch operations in the first quarter of 2026. The investment, facilitated by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), comes as the company works to recover from financial distress and reposition itself in Nigeria’s competitive telecom market.
The funding comes roughly a year after AMCON assumed full management control of ntel, following the operator’s bankruptcy in 2024. According to one person familiar with the matter, the capital injection will allow ntel to rebuild its network, restore both data and voice services, and execute a new, leaner business strategy.
AMCON did not respond to the request for comments on this story.
The new funding and planned relaunch are also part of a broader strategy to prepare ntel for life after AMCON’s eventual exit. The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria currently holds a 55% controlling stake in the company and is expected to sell its shares to new investors once ntel regains stability.
AMCON’s ownership traces back to its 2015 intervention to rescue the telecom operator, then struggling under NATCOM, the consortium that acquired the defunct NITEL and MTel. Acting as both creditor and equity investor, AMCON stepped in after the initial private backers failed to provide additional funding to preserve valuable national telecom assets such as spectrum licences, fibre infrastructure, and submarine cable landing rights.
While AMCON’s intervention has kept ntel from total collapse, its prolonged control has also discouraged private investors wary of state dominance and unresolved legacy debts. Despite President Bola Tinubu’s directive that the telecom operator be sold—“even for scrap,” if necessary—AMCON insists that stabilising the company must come first.
A hybrid comeback
As part of its revival strategy, ntel is expected to adopt a hybrid operational model, positioning itself both as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) and as a provider leveraging its own infrastructure, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The company currently owns over 3,500 kilometres of fibre-optic network across Nigeria, along with more than 600 base stations—assets inherited largely from its legacy national backbone and metro systems.
In preparation for its return to the market, ntel has begun a quiet recruitment drive, seeking new talent across administrative, technical, and financial functions, according to the source. Advertised roles include Regional Admin Coordinator, Front Desk Officer, and Financial Planning Assistant Manager, a signal that the long-dormant operator is gradually reawakening.
In the meantime, AMCON continues to monetise parts of ntel’s portfolio through infrastructure-sharing deals. One example is the spectrum lease agreement with MTN Nigeria, which allows MTN to use ntel’s frequencies across several states, a temporary revenue lifeline as ntel works toward full commercial return.
If the turnaround stays on track, ntel could become Nigeria’s first state-rescued telecom operator to stage a successful comeback.
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