BAI Communications

A neutral-host model means a single company builds and operates the physical network — antennas, fiber, and small cells — and multiple mobile network operators (MNOs) lease space on it simultaneously. BAI applies this in high-density environments like subways and stadiums where it is uneconomical for each carrier to build parallel infrastructure. The firm funds the upfront capital expenditure and earns recurring revenue through long-term service agreements with the MNOs.

The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) acquired BAI Communications from the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) in 2021 through its OMERS Infrastructure division. CPP Investments had held a significant stake in BAI since 2012. The deal gave OMERS full control of a global neutral-host platform, aligning BAI with a pension fund that can provide patient, long-horizon capital suitable for infrastructure build-out.

In 2023, BAI Communications merged its global operating brands — including BAI in the UK and Australia, Mobilitie in the US, and Signal Point — into a single entity called Boldyn Networks. Igor Leprince remained Group CEO. The rebrand consolidated the acquired entities under one name to present a unified identity to large municipal and transit clients across the US, UK, and Europe.

BAI holds the concession to provide cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity across the entire London Underground through its Boldyn Networks subsidiary. In North America, it operates networks for the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) and has deployed infrastructure for the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). The firm also provides connectivity for large stadiums and arenas, though specific venue names beyond transit hubs are not exhaustively disclosed.

The overlap is partial. Traditional tower companies lease vertical real estate to individual carriers. BAI competes at the edge of the network — inside tunnels, venues, and dense urban corridors where individual macro-towers are ineffective. It also competes in the small-cell and distributed antenna system (DAS) segment, which Crown Castle and American Tower do operate in. BAI's differentiation is its exclusive, long-term transit concessions, where it acts as a systems integrator and infrastructure owner, not just a real estate landlord.

BAI acts as a principal investor, using its corporate balance sheet — backed by OMERS — to fund infrastructure design, construction, and operation. Projects are typically structured as long-term concessions (20 years or more) with transport authorities or venue owners. The firm does not operate a fund structure for external limited partners; it deploys its own permanent capital directly into each network build.

Igor Leprince is the Group CEO and has led the firm through its acquisition by OMERS, the acquisitions of Mobilitie and Signal Point, and the consolidation into the Boldyn Networks brand. He has driven the strategy to position the company as a global neutral-host consolidator, acquiring regional operators in the US and Europe to build a contiguous platform capable of bidding on multi-city transit connectivity contracts.