Iroko TV to be Listed on London Stock Exchange, Targets $30m

One of Africa's first mainstream online movie streaming websites, IROKO TV, is seeking to be listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) Alternative Investment Market within the next year, CEO Jason Njoku tells The Africa Report.

iROKOtv was launched on December 1, 2011. Dubbed the ‘Netflix’ of Africa, it is the world’s largest legal digital distributor of African movies, especially Nollywood films.

According to Njoku, the sale would aim to raise between $20 million and $30 million and would value the whole business at between $80 million and $100 million.

He also added that discussions with brokers will start in the coming weeks.

Confirming the report on his official Twitter handle, he tweeted, ‘God willing It feels like the right time’’.

In August 2020, Njoku has muted the idea of laying off about 150 workers partly because of the devaluation of the naira which has affected his company’s revenue since 2016.

He also noted that his firm will focus more on North America and Western Europe subscribers, who account for more than 80 per cent of revenues.

According to him, the devaluation of Naira dropped the platform’s subscription costs from N3,000 ($18) in 2015 to N3,000 ($8.33) by 2017.

Currently, a subscription to the platform costs $6.3 with a dollar equivalent to N477.

Njoku said it was rather strange to be finding out after almost nine years with IROKOtv, five exclusively focused in Africa, that the brand “may be too early for Africa”.

Interestingly, while the company’s fortunes are dipping in Africa, business is booming internationally with the average revenue per user in the west between $25 and $30.

February 12, 2021