Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Finnish Fund for Industrial Cooperation Ltd (Finnfund) has made a 10 million euros (approximately Rs 1.42 billion) equity investment in internet service provider WorldLink.
WorldLink Chairperson Dilip Agrawal and Senior Investment Manager, Head of Digital Infrastructure and Solutions portfolio at Finnfund, Kuutti Kilpeläinen, signed the investment agreement in the presence of Foreign Trade and Development Minister of Finland, Ville Tavio, on Thursday.
“Finnfund’s investments in digital infrastructure seek to provide communities with faster, more affordable and reliable internet, and WorldLink has been working towards bridging the digital divide in Nepal by expanding its services to rural areas of Nepal and to remote villages,” Kilpeläinen said.
According to Finnfund, the new investment will be used to expand the existing fiber network and to build WorldLink’s first Tier 3 data center.
“Finnfund’s investment is a significant milestone in our mission to connect every corner of Nepal to fast, reliable, and affordable internet”, Agrawal said. “By expanding our fiber network and establishing a world-class data center, we aim to bridge the urban-rural digital divide and accelerate digital transformation across the country.”
WorldLink provides employment to over 5,000 people and has 35% broadband market share in Nepal. The company currently provides services in 73 of the 77 districts in Nepal.
Last year, British International Investment (BII) and Dolma Impact Fund invested $8.4 million and $6.9 million, respectively, in WorldLink. BII also invested $12 million in WorldLink in 2019.
