In the ‘Future Telecoms Infrastructure Review’, published by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport in July 2018, it was estimated that around GBP 30bn of funding would be required in order to meet the government’s targets for full fibre coverage by 2033, with the vast majority of that funding coming from the private sector. In a series of CMS reports looking at ‘Infrastructure for our Connected Future’ we noted that although the UK is making progress, with M&A activity driving changes to the industry, fibre infrastructure is still significantly lacking compared to other EU countries. So how is this infrastructure going to be delivered and who will be writing the cheques?
To reflect on these questions, a number of senior figures from across the telecommunications and finance industries gathered for a roundtable at the offices of CMS, to discuss the rise of digital infrastructure as an asset class and the opportunities and challenges this brings investors, manufacturers, operators and advisors in the industry.
In this report, we highlight the themes that emerged from those discussions, including how the participants feel that regulators and investors are responding to those challenges and opportunities, and their predictions for the future.
