(Reuters) - Finnish telecom equipment maker Nokia (HE:NOKIA) said on Thursday it would buy back 150 million euros ($162 million) of its March 2021 notes as it restructures its finances.
Nokia, which axed its dividend after a profit warning in October to preserve cash, is battling with China's Huawei [HWT.UL] and Sweden's Ericsson (BS:ERICAs) in the race to build next-generation 5G networks.
"We are pleased to have pre-financed our 2021 and 2022 maturities in-line with our prudent capital structure management," Chief Financial Officer Kristian Pullola said in a statement.
He said Nokia was positioning the business well to continue to fund research and development needed in the industry.
Nokia said it accepted 66% of notes tendered and 350 million euros of its March 2021 notes would remain outstanding after settlement of the offer.
Barclays (LON:BARC) Bank, Citigroup (NYSE:C) Global Markets, Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) International and Nordea Bank acted as joint dealer managers for the tender offer.
Last week Nokia issued two new euro-denominated fixed-rate notes, raising 1 billion euros in total.