NE BUSINESS BUREAU
MUMBAI, JUNE 7
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and Jio Platforms Limited on Sunday said it sold a 1.16 percent stake in its digital unit to Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) for Rs 5,683.50 crore, taking the cumulative fundraising to Rs 97,885.65 crore that will help pare debt at the oil-to-telecom conglomerate.
“This investment values Jio Platforms at an equity value of Rs 4.91 lakh crore and an enterprise value of Rs 5.16 lakh crore. ADIA’s investment will translate into a 1.16 percent equity stake in Jio Platforms on a fully diluted basis,” the company said in a statement.
With this investment, Jio Platforms has raised Rs 97,885.65 crore from leading global investors, including Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, General Atlantic, KKR, Mubadala, and ADIA in less than seven weeks.
The AIDA deal comes within days of Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala Investment Co picking up 1.85 percent in Jio Platforms for Rs 9,093.60 crore on June 5. On that day, private equity fund Silver Lake invested another Rs 4,546.80 crore for an additional 0.93 percent stake in Jio Platforms.
With these investments, Reliance has sold all of the targeted 21 percent equity in Jio Platforms ahead of a potential IPO.
Jio Platforms, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd, is a next-generation technology company. Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd, with 388 million mobile subscribers, will continue to be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jio Platforms.
An elated, Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said, “I am delighted that ADIA, with its track record of more than four decades of successful long-term value investing across the world, is partnering with Jio Platforms in its mission to take India to digital leadership and generate inclusive growth opportunities. This investment is a strong endorsement of our strategy and India”s potential”.
The transaction is subject to regulatory and other customary approvals.
“Jio Platforms is at the forefront of India’s digital revolution, poised to benefit from major socio-economic developments and the transformative effects of technology on the way people live and work.
“The rapid growth of the business, which has established itself as a market leader in just four years, has been built on a strong track record of strategic execution. Our investment in Jio is a further demonstration of ADIA’s ability to draw on deep regional and sector expertise to invest globally in market-leading companies and alongside proven partners,” Hamad Shahwan Aldhaheri, Executive Director of the Private Equities Department at ADIA, said.
Morgan Stanley acted as financial advisor to Reliance Industries and AZB & Partners, and Davis Polk & Wardwell acted as legal counsel.
Established in 1976, ADIA is a globally-diversified investment institution that prudently invests funds on behalf of the Government of Abu Dhabi through a strategy focused on long-term value creation. It manages a global investment portfolio that is diversified across more than two dozen asset classes and sub-categories.
